Hyderabad: With no contractor coming forward to take up construction of 2BHK houses for the poor, the TS government has convened a meeting of builders and real estate representatives on Wednesday regarding what should be done to reduce the cost of the 2BHK houses.
Contractors and builders pointed out that the existing unit cost offered by the government was not sufficient to build 2BHK houses in Hyderabad and rural areas.
The government has fixed the unit cost in GHMC limits at Rs 7 lakh and Rs 5.30 lakh in rural areas with each 2BHK unit having a built-up area of 540 sq. ft.
Builders and contractors informed the government that it would not be possible to build a 2BHK house at this cost and asked it to either reduce the built-up area by 50 sq. ft or increase the unit cost up to Rs 9 lakh.
The 2BHK housing scheme is one of the biggest poll promise of the TRS. It had announced construction of 2.60 lakh units, of which 1.60 lakh would be in the GHMC limits and the remaining 1 lakh in the districts.
The government has called tenders for construction of 2BHK houses several times since January this year but contractors are not coming forward.
Housing minister A. Indrakaran Reddy on Wednesday held a day-long workshop with builders and contractors to discuss the measures to be taken to make the scheme viable both for contractors and the government.
Former CREDAI national president C. Shekar Reddy suggested that the government allow builders to procure bulk orders on construction material from shortlisted reputed companies for discounted rates instead of the government interfering in the process.
“This will enable builders to get construction material for a discount up to 40 per cent on bulk orders. The built-up area can be limited to 500 sq. ft with changed designs without compromising on the functionality,” Mr Reddy suggested.
