E-route to Mhada’s houses finds few takers

The compulsory online filling of application for 4,034 low-cost Maharashtra Housing Area Development Authority (Mhada) houses found few takers. The housing board has received only 85,898 applications till Monday.

The compulsory online filling of application for 4,034 low-cost Maharashtra Housing Area Development Authority (Mhada) houses found few takers. The housing board has received only 85,898 applications till Monday.

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Talking to the Hindustan Times, legislator and Mhada board member Krishna Hegde, blamed poor response on the lack of awareness about this online system. “The online filling of forms was a positive step but I think not many people were aware of doing it the right way,” he said.

Hegde said he along with a few others tried to assist those keen on applying by opening help centers across the city.

Though the last day for submission is Thursday, till date 1,82,028 forms had been downloaded.

Earlier, forms were filled manually, but the housing body made online filing compulsory this year as it eliminates mistakes and saves processing time.

A Mhada official also blamed poor response on the hike in prices of houses. “There was no clarity in the prices and the hike did not augur well with people who are already suffering due to price hike in their day-to-day life,” said a Mhada official.

Last year, the number of applicants was 3.28 lakh for 3,449 flats while in 2009, it was 4.33 lakh for 3,863 flats.