With the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) looking to attract more buyers for its unsold flats by amending its housing regulations, documents accessed by The Hindu show that all the housing schemes launched by the authority since 2014 have received a poor response.
According to the document, which gives an overview of the sale of flats in all the housing schemes launched since 2014, including those in 2017, 2019 and early 2021, a majority of the flats offered were unsold.
In the authority’s 2014 housing scheme, in which 25,040 flats were offered, a total of 12,270 flats remained unsold.
In a housing scheme launched in 2019, out of 17,922 flats offered, 15,902 flats remained unsold. Similarly, in the authority’s 2017’s scheme, 9,286 flats out of 12,617 remained unsold.
In early 2021, the DDA launched a housing scheme with 1,353 flats up for sale in areas including Jasola, Dwarka, Vasant Kunj, Rohini and Narela. Of the total, 860 flats were not sold.
Special housing scheme
In December 2021, the authority launched a special housing scheme with 18,335 flats — most of these were returned by previous allottees — in areas including Dwarka, Rohini, Narela and Jasola. Of the total number, 11,452 were single-bedroom Lower Income Group (LIG) flats, while 5,702 were meant for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). The remaining flats belonged to the Middle Income Group (MIG) and High Income Group (HIG) categories.
The DDA cited the third wave of COVID-19 infections as the reason for a dip in public response and extended the deadline of the scheme from February 7 to March 10.
The agency said that it received a total of 22,170 applications for its December 2021 special housing scheme and payments from 12,253 applicants.
Despite multiple requests by this reporter, the data regarding the preferences of applicants was not provided.
Attracting homebuyers
To attract more buyers towards its unsold inventory, on March 11, the agency approved an amendment to its housing regulations, removing a clause that prohibited people who already own a flat or a plot in Delhi from buying more DDA flats.
While admitting its housing schemes have received poor response since 2014, the agency points out that buyers are spoilt for choice, owing to the presence of several private builders. “This is giving a stiff competition and leading to lesser demand for DDA flats,” the document notes.
Asked about the current status of the unsold flats, a senior DDA official said the authority had added “all its unsold inventory” in the special housing scheme of December 2021.
“We have 18,500 unsold flats, including those from previous schemes. We received over 12,000 applications after the last scheme was launched. Except for Narela, which has connectivity issues, we have received an encouraging response for flats in Jasola and Dwarka areas,” said the senior official.
“When we build a new housing inventory, there will be no relaxation with respect to the amendment. The first preference will be given to people who do not own a house or plot in the city. If the inventory remains unsold, then the relaxation in the regulation will kick in,” the official added.
