We find out what people say about state built houses…

 Housing colonies built by government agencies like the Agra Development Authority, the Awas Vikas Nigam, or even cooperative group housing bodies, have too many dissatisfied and disgruntled residents whose scroll of complaints never seems to get shorter.

 The latest trend however is that those who can afford are dismantling government structures and re-building according to their own fancy and design, or superimposing a new structure on the older one provided by the state agencies.

 From Kamla Nagar to Jaipur House colony, everywhere new constructions are coming up on the old structures allotted by the state agencies. The latest to join the new trend is the sprawling Awas Vikas Nigam colony between Bodla and Sikandra. Older structures are making way for new ones. “We can’t live in these government houses. When we took possession of the ADA built structure, the roof was leaking, the bathroom-toilet drains were choked, the plaster was coming off, the RCC ceiling was about to cave in, the boundary wall was half complete. For our own safety and comforts we had to re-do the whole thing and invest additional resources to make the structure livable,” said Shravan Bharti of Shastripuram.

 For close to 30 years residents of ADA Flats in Ashok Nagar have been running to every authority to get their colony face-lifted and streamlined. “During rains the nullah becomes full and the residents are forced to remain confined to their homes. The crumbling structures are a constant threat. But no one listens to us,” said senior journalist Tribhuvan Mathur. The ADA flats, 48 in all, were constructed 40 years ago, but till date we have no water supply or sewer connections, and this is in the heart of the city, Mathur adds.

 The LIG flats in Kamla Nagar have all but disappeared, replaced by gaudy structures. “When residents use the accommodation to keep goats and buffaloes, open dairies or grocery shops, what land use pattern or facilities are you talking of. The open space for parks is used for dumping cow dung or fire wood, and then these people come to us with complaints,” reacted an official of the Awas Vikas Nigam.

Only the Balkeshwar colony flats built by the state labor department retain the original shape and layout. But the occupants are no longer from the labor class. “Most flats have been sold off illegally or sub-let, and nobody’s writ runs here,” says a resident Ganeshi Babu.

According to Ram Kumar Sharma, the Balkeshwar colony, with 1296 one room and two room sets came up in early 1950s, essentially for the labor class. A large number of original occupants are from the armed forces, particularly COD, 509 base workshop. The construction is so good and layout so well planned out, that till date there has been no need to restructure it. “It is perhaps the only government colony which meets all norms and quality standards,” Ram Kumar adds.

Since government flats or houses are generally cheaper or subsidized there’s always a beeline of buyers. “In course of time when the land prices shoot up, new buyers come in. They then restructure and redesign or add new features, often encroaching upon government land,” explains property market specialist Hari Dutt.

In sharp contrast you have the private sector housing where exacting standards are met and some if not all promises kept. “If you don’t take the prices of land and construction into consideration, it is always safer to buy from one of the many new land developers and colonizers. The new townships coming up in various parts are well planned and basic amenities provided. The builders and architects are under legal scanner and can be hauled up in courts of law for any breach of promise,” says Sumit Vibhav of Vibhav Builders.

“The government housing colonies provide cheap and affordable accommodation, while private houses are generally beyond the reach of the common man. It however does not mean that the construction quality of the government houses should be poor and no effort should be made to give the common man a fair deal. For ensuring standards are met, citizens’ watch dog committees or resident welfare societies must play an active role,” says financial adviser Sudhir Gupta.

Right now there is a lot of pressure on government agencies which have to implement the Kanshi Ram housing scheme, to provide almost free accommodation to thousands of poor people in the cities and smaller towns. “The dream of a private space of one’s own has to be translated into reality,” says Bahujan Samaj Party youth leader Arvind Pushkar.