Homes in the City

As per the Housing for All Plan of Action (HFAPoA) of Bhuj, prepared under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna (PMAY) in 2018, out of a total of 13,978 households residing in slums in Bhuj, 83 percent (approximately 11,631) houses were owned and were sited on public land.

Informal housing caters to over one-third of the population in our cities, who cannot afford formal housing. Cities are known as engines of economy and this economy consists of over 90 per cent informal sector workers. However, housing requirements for these people have never got utmost priority by governments, post-independence.

Akbarbhai (35), a Maldhari (semi-nomadic cattle herder) is struggling to survive as the lockdown to check the spread of coronavirus has hit demand of dairy products badly and led to prices crashing in Bhuj. He lives in Gandhinagari, an informal settlement in Bhuj that is home to around 30 cattle herders. His joint family of 15 members includes his two brothers and three sisters.