India is Asia’s third-largest economy and the second-most populous country in the world after China. In a fast-developing and highly populous country like India, the role of housing authorities is crucial. It is in this context that we will discuss the responsibilities of India’s central housing ministry, formally known as the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MOHUA).
Since land is a state subject, most policies related to housing are formulated under state-run housing schemes. However, the centre also provides housing across the country under various flagship programmes, through the MOHUA.
The housing minister is ‘the apex authority at the national level, to formulate policies, sponsor and support programmes, coordinate the activities of various central ministries, state governments and other nodal authorities, and monitor all the programmes concerning housing and urban affairs in the country.’
The housing ministry helps the government formulate laws and urban development policies that determine the course of residential development across the country. This is why the MOHUA has been entrusted with the launch of key legislation like the RERA and the Model Tenancy Act.
Main responsibilities of the MOHUA
The housing ministry manages:
- Properties owned by the union government, including all government buildings and estates
- The four rehabilitation markets in New Delhi – Sarojini Nagar Market, Shankar Market, Pleasure Garden Market, and Kamla Market
- Land allotment in Delhi
- Development of government colonies
- Lease of government properties in Delhi and New Delhi
- Schemes of large-scale acquisition, development & disposal of land in Delhi
Works by other government bodies that the housing ministry oversees
- Central Public Works Organisation
- Delhi Development Authority
- Rajghat Samadhi Committee
- National Cooperative Housing Federation
- Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH)
- Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO)
- NBCC and its subsidiaries
- Hindustan Prefab Limited
Laws formulated under the MOHUA
- Delhi master plans
- The Real Estate (Regulation &Development Act), 2016
- The Model Tenancy Act, 2021
- The Requisitioning and Acquisition of lmmovable Property Act, 1952 (30 of 1952)
- The Delhi Hotels (Control of Accommodation) Act, 1949 (24 of 1949)
- The Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971 (40 of 1971)
- The Delhi Development Act, 1957 (61 of 1957)
- The Delhi Rent Control Act, 1958 (59 of 1958)
- The Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1976 (33 of 1976)
- The Delhi Urban Art Commission Act, 1973 (1 of 1974) (Reprint)
- The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014
The MOHUA is also responsible for the following:
- National housing policy
- Town and country planning
- Fixing fares for rail-based urban transport systems, which are not part of the Indian Railways
- Construction of freedom fighters’ memorials
- Constitution of the municipal corporations and local self-government administrations, excluding Panchayati Raj institutions
- Water supply
- Central Council of Local Self-Government
- Planning & development of the National Capital Region, and administration of the National Capital Region Planning Board Act, 1985 (2 of 1985)
- Formulation of housing policy and programme, barring rural housing
- Review of the implementation of schemes
- Collection and dissemination of data on housing, building materials, and techniques
- General measures for reduction of building costs
- Urban development, including slum-clearance schemes, and the jhuggi and jhonpri removal schemes
- Programmes for urban employment and urban poverty alleviation
Schemes being managed by MOHUA
- Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)
- Smart Cities Mission
- Swachh Bharat Mission
- Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT)
- Rajiv Awas Yojana
- Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY)
- Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM)
- Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)
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MOHUA Key Information
Housing Minister: Hardeep Singh Puri
Housing Secretary: Durga Shanker Mishra
Headquarters: Nirman Bhawan, New Delhi
Housing secretary contact information
Room No. 122-C,
Nirman Bhawan, New Delhi
Phone: 011-23062377
Email: secyurban@nic.in
FAQs
What is the full form of MOHUA?
The full form of MOHUA is the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
Who is currently India’s housing minister?
Hardeep Singh Puri is India’s current housing minister.