New Housing Colonies as a means of Improving Urban Living in ...

New Housing Colonies as a means of Improving Urban
Living in Nepal
Chandra Laxmi Hada
UNDP/ERRRP Project, Babarmahal, Kathmandu, Nepal
clhada@yahoo.com / clhada@errrp.org.np
G.P Ganapathy
Centre for Disaster Mitigation and Management, VIT University, Vellore 632014, India
seismogans@yahoo.com
Abstract
This paper is based on the theme of UN Habitat 2010 is "Better City, Better Life," representing the
common wish of the whole humankind for a better living in future urban environments. This theme
represents a central concern of the international community for future policy making, urban strategies and
sustainable development. It gives an overview of housing situation and importance of new housing
colonies for creating the better urban living in Nepal. Based on the review of research, literature and
existing policies, the author has recommended some measures for wonderful urban future.
Keywords: Urban Living, Housing, New Housing Colonies, Better City, Better Life, Nepal

1. Background
Housing refers to a dwelling or a housing unit. It is said that the well being of the population in general
depends on the quantity and quality of housing available. The right to housing has been recognized in
various declarations: Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “Everyone has
the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family,
including food, clothing, shelter …” Housing is one of the key indicators of urban growth and economy
of a particular city.
In 1800, 2% of the global population lived in cities. In 1950, the figure raised to 29%, in 2000, almost
half the world population moved into cities, and by 2010, as estimated by the United Nations, the urban
population will account for 55% of the total human population. The 21st Century will be known as the
century of the city - a moment in history when one human being tipped the scales to make the global
population predominantly urban. During this century megacities will continue to grow and massive
conurbations of more than 20 million people, known as meta-cities, will emerge. Simultaneously, the
majority of the world’s urban population will continue to live in small cities with less than 500,000
inhabitants and intermediate cities with between 1 and 5 million inhabitants. Better city is responsive to
the needs and aspirations of its residents. It offers accessible, affordable housing, quality education and
healthcare systems, sustainable, innovative and safe transport for all. It creates conditions to provide
adequate housing and basic services and strives to improve the housing conditions of the urban poor. A
city with better quality of life creates a safe environment that protects its residents from accidents and
different forms of crime and violence.
The need of the urban housing colonies is increasing with the passage of time with faster pace of
urbanization underway in the country. Housing is basic human need for civilized living but it has
become one of the complex problems for the low-income urban dwellers even to afford a modest house
in Nepal. The problem in many developing and even in some developed countries is not that housing is
too expensive, but that incomes are too low. Rising land and house prices is also a concern facing most
world cities and the ability to maintain affordable and high-quality places to live is an important issue. To
fulfill the demand for housing, government, financial institution and private sector have started organized
housing and related activities in Nepal. This is necessary because only the organized housing can solve
the urban housing problems. The owner built housing is not going to solve it as has been seen at the
present.
In this context there are series of constraints that the urban area is facing at the moment. These are the
lack of finance, unavailability of the serviced land plots, the lack of optimally efficient building materials
and construction technology, the lack of suitable legislation about rental housing and providing housing
to the poor people, the need to upgrade the dilapidated housing stock, lack of housing for disadvantaged
groups such as the old, the orphans and the street children and above all the lack of recent data in
housing.

2. Housing Situation in Nepal
In Nepal, housing occupants are broadly categorized into owner, renter, rent-free and others. Ninety Two
percent of the households reside in their own housing units, 5 percent are renters (pay rent) and 2 percent
live on rent-free housing units. Not surprisingly, 24 percent of households in urban areas pay rent and the
proportion is 33 percent in the Kathmandu valley urban areas alone. (NLSS, 2004). Average size of
dwelling declined from 604 to 531 square feet during the same period. The proportion of households
occupying housing units with cement-bonded outer walls, concrete or galvanized sheet roof, and
cemented/tiled floor have all increased between these two periods. Similarly, household's access to
electricity and piped water has increased from 14 to 37 percent and from 33 to 44 percent respectively.
Almost 39 percent of households now have toilet facility in their own dwellings, compared to 22 percent
in 1995/96. According to the census of 2001, about 14 percent of the population in Nepal is residing in
urban areas, and this figure is estimated to reach to 24 percent in the next 10 years. Not surprisingly, 24
percent of households in urban areas pay rent and the proportion is 33 percent in the Kathmandu valley
urban areas alone. (NLSS, 2004).
Housing is a basic need which people fulfill through formal or informal means. With more than 1.5
million people, (220,000 households) the Kathmandu Valley is the urban center of Nepal. One-third of its
residents live in slum dwellings and 18,000 people are squatting (without land rights). (KVTDC, 2005).
With respect to the occupancy status of the households, the condition of the population in Nepal seems
satisfactory; the housing affordability is high. But it is a pity that the quality of the majority of these
housing units is not satisfactory. For people from all income groups - but especially for the poor -
housing is not a product, but a process. It’s not something that is completed all at one time according to a
plan, but is developed in stages, as a household’s needs and resources change. The growing urban
population is spurring governments to rethink their strategies on housing related activities. Public sector
housing is almost unknown in Nepal as housing is considered an individual responsibility.
Like any other major cities in the world, Kathmandu valley has its own challenges, such as rapid
urbanization process and haphazard development, which have put pressure on the city's natural resources
and physical space. The city's rapidly growing population is also stretching its infrastructure to its limit.
Water shortage, lack of proper waste management and traffic congestion, among others, have made life
difficult here. Growing squatter settlements, overcrowded housing condition and ever growing homeless
population indicate the severity of problems in urban Nepal. Especially in the Kathmandu valley, not
only for the poor, but also for many middle class households, housing has become unaffordable.
3. New Housing Colonies
The concept of real estate and housing came to Kathmandu around 1990 but it took almost a decade to
catch on. Kathmandu Residency is the first to move towards establishing sustainable real estate industry
from Ansal Chaudhary Company. With the enactment of Apartment Ownership Act in 1997, legal

framework for development, sale and management has been established. This act has been instrumental
in initiating a formal housing market in Nepal where developers, design consultants, contractors and
bankers have their own role to play. The bankers have found a new avenue for investment (both for
builders and prospective buyers). Similarly designers have found housing as a reliable job and an
opportunity to express their creativity and innovation. Housing developers have emerged as the champion
in the market because of their skill in bringing together all the above-mentioned parties in achieving their
goal. Housing developers have been successful in creating a new kind of business entrepreneurship in the
country that can guide planned urban development by the private sector. Investors are finding housing as
an attractive area for investment because of its expanding market and lucrative return.
Prior to that, the busy people of the city would plan for almost five years to build their own houses. The
housing industry spared them from the burden of long and arduous task of finding a location for
constructing a building, collecting materials and so on and so forth. In the Kathmandu Valley,
government could only cater less than 10% of the demand of the housing plots. But these are far from
adequate. As many as 72 private group housing projects have emerged to supply the readymade housing
in Kathmandu valley (KVTDC, 2009).
So far the Kathmandu Valley Town Development Implementation Committee (KVTDIC), Lalitpur had
approved total dwelling units of 11 group housing project contributes 877 numbers and the 12 apartment
project contributes 1128 dwelling units constituting 2005 numbers in Lalitpur district. Whereas in
Kathmandu, the total dwelling units of 10 group housing project contributes 626 numbers and the 32
apartment project contributes 1838 dwelling units constituting 2954 numbers in Kathmandu District. The
Bhaktapur district is on the process of approving 1 group housing project only. These data are from the
Kathmandu Valley Town Development Committee, Kathmandu Valley Town Development
Implementation Committee, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur Town Development Committee.
Table 1: Housing Projects approved by KVTDIC (Source: KVTDIC, DUDBC, March 2009)
Location
Lalitpur District
Kathmandu District
Name of project
No. of No. of Dwelling
Project Units
Group Housing Project 11 877
Apartment Housing
Project
12 1128
Group Housing Project 10 626
Apartment Housing
Project
32 1838
Bhaktapur District Group Housing Project 1
Kathmandu and Lalitpur
already constructed before
coming Apartment Act
2054: Not necessary to take
Permit.
Group Housing Projects
and Apartments
6 573
Total
5042 Dwelling
Units

The total of 5042 number of dwelling units has been permitted formally for the organized private housing
projects to the housing developers through KVTDC.
Photographs of Organized Housing Colonies in Kathmandu Valley
Figure 1: The Comfort Housing, Sitapaila,
Kathmandu
Figure 2: The Sunrise Homes, Balkumari, Lalitpur
4. New Housing Colonies for Better Urban Living
The development of new housing colonies has been quite encouraging as part of planned urbanization.
With the availability of housing finance from banks and financial institutions, housing development in
Nepal has been transforming from owner-built system to organized housing development. Housing in
major cities of Nepal is now being considered as a commodity rather than a social asset.
For example a survey conducted in the housing project (Household), especially four housing projects are
taken into consideration namely: Civil Homes Phase I, Phase II, Sunrise Homes, and The Comfort
Housing. The price of houses and apartments varies based on the housing company and its facilities and
location. The number of household living in the dwelling unit is mostly of nuclear family. The income
range of each household varies from NRs. 10, 1000 to 350, 000 per month. The current cost of dwelling
units in organized housing projects varies from 32 lakhs to 200 lakhs in Kathmandu valley. Till so far
most housing developers are catering only the very high income group, high income group, and middle
high income group except few for middle income group and low income group of people.
The housing colonies has been gradually pickling up in Kathmandu due to increasing trend among people
to live in high standard colonies. So it certainly indicates that people are moving towards informal

housing to formal housing. Regarding the quality of dwelling units most of the housing colonies are made
up of the frame structures. The demand for housing - both separate and apartment - has been increasing in
the country because people living in them can avail of various many facilities. The housing companies
have been providing many facilities including security, supply of drinking water, electricity backup,
garden, children playground, physical fitness, elevators, ATM service, swimming pool, common space,
and others. The users are mostly satisfied with the built environment, better living condition, community
living and good security in new housing colonies. Apart from that dwelling units can now be bought, sold
and rented out. The new housing colonies have more common space than private one which seems like
following Malla period of constructing courtyard system houses. As we all know that housing covers
mostly 60% of land use and the importance of new housing colonies in developing physical, social and
cultural level stands highly significant for better urban living environment.
5. Conclusions
The quest for a better life has run through the urban history of mankind. Owning a house is everyman’s
dream and his prestige attached to it. In today’s fast paced life, spending time and effort towards building
a house is something that very few can afford. The sad fact is that the formal housing systems, as they
exist today in most cities, have been unable to reach the majority of the urban populations in Nepal. The
prospects of housing sector is very bright because of an increasing urban population, limited land,
availability of housing loan from different banking institutions that has put new homes within the reach
of more customers. The Housing developers of Nepal have been providing quality housing but they have
been catering to the need of upper classes only. Options to afford housing are needed that can meet the
scale required in the context of rapid urbanization. Furthermore, the right kind of desirable process is
needed in which all group of people are the center in achieving large scale housing development bring
about significant change and development in urban poverty issues, improvement of quality of life and
human equality. It can also directly affect better governance and management of the city as a whole. So
this is an exciting time in urban housing development as the 21st Century will be known as the century of
the city. So, the public and private agencies have to join hand with the Government to make the
realization of the urban housing needs for a wonderful urban future, of Better Cities, Better Life, a
reality.
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