Anuj Puri, Chairman – ANAROCK Property Consultants
India continues to strive for a more globally-aligned image for urban living conditions, which is what the Smart Cities mission is really all about.
However, the primary need if India’s housing market is to rank higher on global benchmarks of urban liveability is still a numbers game. Access to quality affordable housing, if ‘quality’ is primarily defined by location, is still a major challenge for most Indian citizens.
The dearth of affordable homes is only widening, with deficit numbers predicted to reach 30 million by 2022. This, despite the fact that the current Government has clearly understood that quality, quantity, availability and affordability of housing are integral drivers for a country’s economic competitiveness.
To be fair, India has ramped up massively on affordable housing, and this segment has been leading the pack in Indian real estate over the past 3 to 4 years.
The massive impetus that the Government has given to the one electoral promise which got the most attention – Housing for All by 2022 – has certainly caused a major sea-change.
Thanks to this impetus,