Bhubaneswar, April 9: The housing and urban development department plans to build a stock of 10,000 affordable dwelling units here within three years to meet the increasing demand for houses under this category.

The housing bank will be for the economically weaker section (EWS), low income group (LIG), low and medium income group (LMIG) and the medium income group (MIG). The price range will vary from Rs 3.5 lakh to Rs 15.6 lakh.

Sources said that EWS houses of 350 square feet area will cost Rs 3.5 lakh, LIG houses of 560sqft will cost Rs 5.6 lakh, LMIG of 840sqft will be available for Rs 10.5 lakh and MIG of 1,119sqft will cost Rs 15.6 lakh.

Housing and urban development minister Debiprasad Mishra said 4.1 lakh affordable houses were needed in the state. “We are trying to immediately add 5,000 affordable dwelling units for all four categories of houses. Within three years we will try to complete another 5,000. Every year, more such houses will be added to cater to the needs of the people who need houses that cost between Rs 3.5 lakh and Rs 20 lakh,” he said.

According to an estimate made by the housing and urban development department, more than 80 per cent of city dwellers cannot afford more than Rs 20 lakh for their houses. To cater to the needs of the low and medium income groups, the city requires an investment of around Rs 1,680 crore. As the entire investment cannot come from state government agencies alone, private players would also be roped in. The Odisha State Housing Board (OSHB) will work as the nodal agency.

Chief secretary Bijay Patnaik said that in the past, the distribution of affordable houses had never been successful as many allottees had sold off their property.

“Affordable housing schemes also include houses for Class III employees of the state government and people in the private and corporate sector who are unable to afford even Rs 20 lakh for a house in the city,” Patnaik said.

With real estate developers catering to the premium segments and OSHB entering into agreements with private agencies, or building premium segment houses to generate revenue, the construction of affordable houses has taken a backseat in and around the city.

Principal secretary of the housing department Injeti Srinivas said: “We formed the affordable housing policy nearly six months ago and formed the guidelines recently. We are studying the best practices in other states and their policies towards land availability and other issues so that national players working on affordable housing projects can come here to start their projects.”

Srinivas hinted that the state government had already informed the housing board about creating a land bank of nearly 100 acres near Gothapatana on the outskirts of the city. “All amenities such as public transport, health care, pipe water supply, sewerage and civic amenities will be made available by the various state-run agencies in future for the affordable houses,” said Srinivas. Vice-chairman of the Bhubaneswar Development Authority Vishal Kumar Dev urged local real estate developers to take up affordable housing projects.