Goa Government Moves to Build One Housing Project in Every Taluka

Goa Housing Board Scheme: Goa’s state government has decided to establish one housing project in each taluka, specifically aimed at citizens who cannot afford to buy a house or are currently homeless. The initiative will be executed through the Goa Housing Board (GHB), which has been handed the responsibility of implementation.

The chairman of the GHB, Jit Arolkar, confirmed that the first project would rise in Pernem. It will consist of 100 one-bedroom flats, reserved for residents of the taluka who will qualify under the yet-to-be-finalised eligibility criteria. He emphasised that this is not a token gesture but a structured plan ordered by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, who has insisted that every taluka must have at least one such project. The flats, Arolkar explained, will be provided under the Chief Minister Awas Yojana, as per a report by ET Realty.

Earlier, the idea was to sell the flats at subsidised rates to those in need. But the plan has now taken a deliberate turn. The government has decided to allot these homes on a 100-year lease rather than outright sale. Why such a shift? Arolkar admitted there is a real risk of manipulation, where individuals could exploit the scheme by purchasing flats under false pretenses, often through a proxy, only to later resell or rent them out at inflated prices. “We don’t want people to misuse the allotment. If any allottee becomes financially sound and can afford to buy his own house, then he should vacate it and it can be reallotted to another needy person,” he stated firmly, as quoted by ET Realty.

This policy choice makes the government’s intention unambiguous it does not want to fuel a cycle of speculative resale. Instead, it wants to create stable housing for those who truly lack it. In other words, the state is not in the business of subsidising future landlords.

The Pernem project is close to being finalised. According to Arolkar, the foundation stone will be laid before the year ends. Land, as always in Goa, is a tricky matter. But here, the GHB has some advantage. In Talukas, which already holds land, projects can be initiated without much delay. Where the board does not own land, it will either acquire it from the revenue department or negotiate with local comunidades. That practical approach is essential because land disputes in Goa have the ability to derail even well-meaning policies.

Chief Minister Sawant himself raised the issue during the monsoon session of the legislative assembly, making it clear that his government intends to introduce a Goa-specific housing scheme for the homeless, separate from but similar in spirit to the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. Sawant explained that two parcels of government-owned land in Pernem have already been identified, earmarked for the construction of 1BHK flats, as per the report.

The introduction of the 100-year lease model could be a decisive factor. It attempts to keep the spirit of welfare intact, preventing profiteering by those who might otherwise exploit loopholes. Still, the enforcement will be the true test. If wealthier allottees refuse to vacate after their financial situation improves, the scheme risks stagnation. And if political pressure creeps into the allotment process, the projects might replicate the same inequities they were meant to fix.

For now, the Pernem flats will serve as the first laboratory of this new experiment. Whether it succeeds or collapses under the weight of Goa’s land politics and bureaucratic delays will determine if the vision of “one project in every taluka” becomes a lived reality for the state’s poor and homeless, or just another promise buried in the archives of assembly speeches.