New guidelines under the Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) slum development programme are flexible and give a number of options.
The guidelines have been framed and the implementation period has been fixed from 2013-22.
“A slum-free cities plan of action (SFC POA) has to be prepared and identification is going on right now,” GVMC Additional Commissioner M. Janaki told The Hindu. The plan envisages implementation in five phases.
Livelihood concerns have to be taken into consideration. A new feature is incremental housing.
Ms. Janaki said, with the sole aim of providing 21 to 26 sq m of plinth area to each of the families, changes can be made in the existing house if possible.
For instance, if a house has a tin or some makeshift roof, it can be replaced with a concrete slab, making the house much better. If the family has space but no toilets, they can be provided.
Another new feature is introduction of rental housing. A society of residents will be formed and the constructed houses would be rented out. This is said to have been successfully tried out in Brazil.
The city has a total of nearly 700 slums — 268 notified and 418 non-notified.
“But, we are revisiting the slums and grading them. Parameters like having water, roads, drainage, and sanitation are critical for rating. And the actual number (for consideration under RAY) may come down,” Ms. Janaki said.
A Total Station Survey (TSS) has been going on. Sources said, so far nearly 90 slums had been covered.
Though Suryatejanagar in Arilova had been sanctioned as a pilot project to be taken up under RAY, it got stuck with residents backtracking on their acceptance of G+3 housing and GVMC is now trying to resolve it, she said.
