Housing crunch is a major problem in most of the towns in the country. And Monggar town is not an exception. To address the issue, local leaders during the recent Dzongkhag Tshogdu call on the need for a housing colony in the town.
Local leaders during the Dzongkhag Tshogdu said as Monggar town is growing rapidly along with the rise in population every year, the town residents are now facing acute housing shortage. So they said, like other districts, there is a dire need of a housing colony to address the problem.
“There are many staff from different ministries and regional offices set up in Monggar town. So everyone knows that most of the civil servants are facing problem to get houses in the town,” said Dorji Leki, the Ngatshang Gup.
The same agenda was discussed during the previous Dzongkhag Tshogdu sessions and a resolution was also submitted to the National Housing Development Corporation. However, the Dzongkhag Architect says that prior to the construction of a housing colony, the situation of tenants staying on rental apartment needs to be studied properly.
“Though we can ask National Housing Development Corporation to construct a housing colony, the situation will be no different from Lhuentse and Trashigang town. Some private house owners were not getting tenants. So how can they pay housing loan? To promote the private sector and to develop town area we have to give an opportunity for private house owners too,” added Sangay Wangchuk, the Architect for Monggar.
The situation became even worse in 2016 after a fire damaged five houses. However, the scenario has changed recently with the completion of a few private buildings.
After extensive deliberation, local leaders have agreed to again submit a resolution to the National Housing Development Corporation for review. Currently, there are more than five-thousand people living in Monggar town.
Sonam Tshering
