There was a time when the residents and civil servants in Trashi Yangtse town faced a housing shortage in the town some years ago. But today, with the Kholongchhu hydro project yet to resume, the house owners in the town said without tenants, they are having a tough time repaying their loans. Some have even lowered the rents but they still find it hard to attract tenants.
The house owners constructed their houses hoping to meet the housing demand of Kholongchhu project staff and earn a good income.
For the construction, they said they had borrowed loans from the banks. House owners said repaying the monthly installments was not a problem when there were staff working for the project.
According to the Thromde Thuemi, there are around 100 houses in Trashi Yangtse town.
“There is a problem of not getting tenants after the Kholongchhu project was put on halt. I am having a difficult time repaying the loan. Moreover, NHDCL is constructing buildings here. I am worried that people might vacate our home and move there,” said Jigme Seldon, a house owner.
“We are not able to repay the loan as people are vacating our houses. The rent was decreased from Nu 10,000 to 5,000 and from Nu 14,000 to 7,000. Yet, we are not getting tenants. This makes it difficult to repay loans on time,” said Chogyal, another house owner.
Some of the house owners are managing the loan repayment from other sources of income. And some have started selling flats.
As of now, bank officials said there are no loan dues.
House owners shared their concerns as the National Housing Development Corporation is constructing new buildings in the town. The corporation is constructing eight buildings which is expected to accommodate 32 households. The building owners in town said this might worsen their situation.
According to the NHDCL, the aim is to provide affordable housing for middle and low-income groups. The office also said that it has yet to confirm who among the residents will fall under that middle and low-income groups. A technical team is carrying out research.
Regarding the Kholongchhu hydro project, the Druk Green Power Corporation said they are waiting for the budget to resume the work. The corporation said they are hopeful that they can resume the project within this year. The Kholongchu hydroelectric joint venture project was dropped in 2022 after it did not progress well under the model.
Ngawang Tenzin, Trashi Yangtse
Edited by Tshering Zam
