The National Housing Development Corporation will be constructing housing colonies in Monggar town to ease the housing crunch and affordability issue. The Works and Human Settlement Minister said this in the National Assembly on Tuesday. For the past few years, the house rent in Monggar town has soared as an increasing number of people started settling in the town.
As quickly as the number of people in Monggar town is increasing, so is the demand for affordable apartments. As a result, the once inexpensive rental apartments are getting pricey. According to the town’s residents, the house rents in the town increased by almost Nu 2000 in just a year.
Rents for commercial space have increased to as high as Nu 50,000 per month.
Unable to bear the brunt of the rising demand and rents, people are forced to stay in Kilikhar, Ridaza, Pekchurung, and Wengkhar.
According to Chencho, a resident there, the population in the district is increasing because most of the regional offices are established there. “Due to limited houses, I am currently staying at Kilikhar which is about five kilometres from the office located in the town. Other districts like Lhuentse have housing colonies to address the housing shortage. So, if NHDCL could construct housing colonies in Monggar too, it would help in addressing the housing crisis.”
Jambay Dorji, a businessman in Monggar says he is forced to stay away from the town where his business is established because of the high rental.
“Due to the housing shortage, the rents have increased drastically. The empty spaces in the core town were already occupied by the regional offices. So, if the government could construct housing colonies, it would address the housing crunch,” he added.
The issue was also discussed in the Dzongkhag Tshogdu a couple of times. A resolution was also submitted to the National Housing Development Corporation. NHDCL, in 2019 informed the Dzongkhag Tshogdu secretariat that the housing proposal report was complete. But the district has not heard from the corporation since.
Considering the mounting pressure on residents, the Monggar MP Karma Lhamo, questioned the Works and Human Settlement Minister regarding the ministry’s plans to construct housing colonies in Monggar, on Tuesday.
“What plans do the works and human settlement ministry have to solve the housing crunch in larger districts or what are the plans of providing services such as NHDCL housing? In Monggar, if the ministry has any plans to build such buildings, when do you think you will be able to start the project?” she asked.
The minister says the works to construct the buildings will commence soon.
“Around 483 people are having trouble finding houses. In the first phase, the government has constructed over a thousand apartments. And Monggar is in the second phase of the project. The NHDCL has already prioritized Monggar in the second phase of the project,” said Works and Human Settlement Minister Dorji Tshering.
Currently, about 5,000 people live in Monggar.
Sonam Tshering/Tshering Dendup
Edited by Sangay Chezom
