After the DDA scam – that the lottery to distribute 5000 flats among 1,50,000 aspirants was rigged (which is only to be expected) – it was not amusing to read the central government’s housing minister’s remark that “the shortage of housing has corrupted the market.”
Actually, the Absence of The Market has Corrupted The State.
The central government’s housing minister is part of our The State from On High.
She quotes some figures:
According to the estimate of the technical group constituted for assessment of the housing shortage at the end of the 10th Five-Year Plan, total housing shortage in the country is 24.71 million dwelling units and 98% of this shortage pertains to the economic weaker section and the low income group.
“The total housing requirement during the 11th Five-Year Plan will be 26.53 million,” said Selja. Highlighting the high cost factor involved in buying houses, she said that it is only in this country that earnings of a life time are not sufficient to buy a house of one’s own.
The reason is an absence of roads – especially in the surrounds of towns and cities, and links between cities and satellite towns. This creates a shortage of urban land and makes it prohibitively expensive. Even ugly properties in dysfunctional neighbourhoods – like DDA’s Vasant Kunj – are expensive. Yet, if you drive down the country lanes between Vasant Kunj and Gurgaon, you will find abundant open land, including unowned scrubland. If there were roads all around, the supply of urban land would increase, making it affordable. Thereafter, a free competitive market in real estate development. The role of the government limited to providing roads. The registration of property titles can be “contracted-out.”
In my book, roads should be Top Priority. The State from on High is diverting our attention with Metros. People have cars today, the number of car owners will grow, and roads must be built. Motorcycling is unsafe today – and all policies should be geared towards making today’s motorcyclists and scooterists car owners. This will also enable better traffic management and hence, safety. Roads must be built for car owners. This means roads must be built all over India – not just the 5-city vision of the Golden Quadrilateral. We need an India-Wide Web network of roads. With cars and roads, all Indians can spread out all over this vast territory. There will be bungalows for all.
The Key Problem today is Corruption. The Market is NOT corrupt, minister, our The State is. There is not only corruption for money. There is the Corruption of The Mind with spurious knowledge. And there is the Corruption of Institutions through senseless practices. I do declare that our The State has been Completely Corrupted by its twin monopolies – the monopoly on roads and the monopoly on land, especially urban land. It is senseless because even ants and bees do not destroy their ant-hills and hives. Man builds cities and towns just as ants build ant-hills. You do not destroy your ant-hill. But these corrupt duds have done just that, running these twin monopolies in a Totally Corrupt way. And they quote meaningless statistics. Do you want these Criminally Insane People to Teach Your Children?
That is the Question.
Take that, Amartya.
Very True!Govt organisations like DDA are there with only purpose of serving currupt politicians & their cronies. Absence of Govt in this area will be better for the people.
ReplyDeleteprobably they find DDA's excellence justified! At least these guys are controlling Delhi's growing 'population'!!
ReplyDeleteCitizens loose! but they gain both way; first by creating the problem and then by creaming out solutions like low cost housing.
It's all a broken window, more than that!
I think the question is how long any human society can withstand it?
I agree with all of your arguments but one.You told about making policies that will turn motor cyclists to car owners. This would lead to traffic congestion in the city and dont forget the effect on environment.The cars will put a burden on our forex reserves as well. Instead of converting two wheeler users to car drivers we must concentrate on building mass transit systems like metros connecting suburbs to city.
ReplyDeleteRe: Jagira -
ReplyDeleteThere are too many cars today. There will be more. And more. This cannot be stopped. So roads must be built.
There is no reason why universal automobile ownership cannot co-exist with an excellent privately provided public transportation system comprising buses, tramways and underground or overhead trains.
We need both. Especially the car, as it empowers The Individual. If we don't have cars and roads, we will be dependent on the government's "transport planner" - and I doubt whether these guys can accomplish much. Look at Delhi's BRT.
Read my "Four Wheels For All" from Liberty Institute.