Govt to ease funding for low-cost homes

The government is planning to ease funding and construction norms for its ‘Housing for All’ programme to speed up construction of affordable houses across the country. Some of the changes under consideration are allowing greater access to institutional finance to the poor, relaxation in eligibility criteria for bank loans and switching to a life cycle cost approach to construction of such houses to bring down costs and ensure quality of construction, said people aware of the matter. Besides, fiscal support is being considered for companies that use recycled products made from waste as the government aims to make it standard for such housing.