Examining Affordable Housing policy in India: A special emphasis on Rajiv Rinn Yojana

Today one of the major issue faced by the developing countries around the world is massive housing shortage which eventually leads to the growth of squatter settlements and slums. Nonetheless Urbanization has acted as a boon for India but it somehow is leading to the concentration of migrants from the nearby towns and villages. Due to which the growth centers are facing shortage in terms of land and housing, increased traffic congestion on roads and above all huge stress on resources like water and power and low per capita open spaces for city dwellers. The major issue which leads to this scenario is the constraint in supply side of these facilities by the government, disinterested private players and shoot up in the prices of real estate and land prices. In India, it is estimated that there is shortage of around 18 million houses, with 99% of this in the economically weaker sections of society. Therefore, the government of India had started various affordable housing schemes to benefit various strata of society. This paper aims to study and analyze the Government of India's programme for Affordable housing, namely Rajiv Rinn Yojana. A very detail analysis of the policy is done to understand the key features of the policy, the merits and demerits of the policy and finally some measures will be suggested that if incorporated in the new policies that targets affordable housing may benefit the target area also helps in nation building.