Research conducted in 2013 by a team of engineers and architects, led by Devdas Menon, professor of civil engineering at IIT, has marked another milestone in creating affordable housing for middle-class Indian families. Taking into account the looming housing problems of the lower income groups in India, last year IIT Madras claimed to have built an extremely affordable housing system. The “GFRG Demonstration Building” presented by the IIT team, has been considered as one of the best thought projects presented by Indian engineers in recent past. The project specifically focused on addressing the aspirations of lower income groups. Refuting ongoing housing scams and difficulties in housing investments, the GFRG Project has given new impetus to the real estate business in India.

The main advantages of the GFRG demonstration construction over other conventional buildings are, in fact, many. A GFRG building promises extremely fast construction, less built-up area, less embodied energy, lower structure cost and building weight, incredible smooth finish without additional plastering, etc. The result of this project was that IIT researchers finally managed to build an 800 square foot two-bedroom house at an affordable price of just 10 lakh INR.

However, the harsh reality of the real estate business in India is that despite advanced research programs and low-cost construction projects, low-income and middle-class families still struggle to obtain quality housing options. in urban and semi-urban locations. In fact, there are many people in India who are bearing the burden of paying the rent for their rented house and EMI for their possible house under construction.

Unfortunately, the residential construction boom in India, which started in 2011 onwards, is mainly focused on serving people belonging to the higher income groups residing in high-end Indian cities. According to 2013 statistics, there was a severe shortage of around 30 million households, coming from people whose annual income is less than 2 Lakhs INR per month. Currently, there is a serious lack of market focus on low-cost construction for low-income people who find their dream of housing increasingly unaffordable due to rising construction costs.

Many civil experts have opined that to meet the growing demand for low-cost housing, construction companies in India still need to conceptualize more polished design methods to manufacture and supply low-cost housing constructions, especially in urban and semi-urban areas. Again, the optimization of technology should not compromise the quality and durability of the buildings.

Today, India’s urban population is growing by the day and slum dwellers, who are below the poverty line (BPL), are also expanding at an alarming rate. Low-cost construction is believed to eventually eradicate India’s current slum scene, especially the one found in and around the metropolises and megacities of India. Meanwhile, inspired by Western nations, many NGOs and private companies have taken the initiative of low cost but energy efficient housing projects built at affordable costs to meet the demand of all income level groups in India.