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

The main advantages of the GFRG demonstration building over other conventional buildings are many. A GFRG building promises extremely fast construction, less built-up area, less embodied energy, lower structure cost and building weight, an incredibly smooth finish without any 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 find it difficult to obtain housing options. quality housing in urban and semi-urban locations. In fact, there are many people in India who bear the burden of paying the rent for their rented house and the EMI of their future house under construction.

Unfortunately, the residential construction boom in India, which started from 2011, 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 INR 2 Lakhs 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 unattainable due to skyrocketing 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 for fabricating and supplying 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.

At present, the urban population in India is growing by the day and slum dwellers, falling 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, drawing inspiration from Western nations, many NGOs and private companies have taken the initiative for low-cost yet energy efficient housing projects built at affordable costs to meet the demand of all income level groups in India.