Burdened with unsold inventory, Delhi Development Authority will consider changes suggested by consultant and is looking to ‘experiment with dynamic pricing and cross-subsidisation’.

New Delhi: Anxious to find takers for the more than 40,000 flats that are reportedly lying vacant in its inventory, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has, in a first since its inception in 1957, roped in a private real estate consultancy to help re-establish itself in the city’s housing market.

The mandate for the consultant, put simply, will be to study and analyse the data provided by the DDA regarding the performance of its housing schemes, housing norms and pricing mechanisms.

The agency will give its findings in a report to the DDA, which will include crucial recommendations that the latter can consider for implementation.

While the DDA’s approach might seem out of the box, the rationale — and urgency — behind the move seems to be fuelled by two factors: a below-par response from homebuyers to all of its “regular” housing schemes since 2014, and a change in leadership within the authority after the entry of its latest vice-chairperson Subhasish Panda, in January.

A regular DDA housing scheme is one that involves certain pre-conditions for prospective buyers to be eligible to apply, starting from not already owning a house or plot in Delhi to getting their choice of housing through a draw of lots.

The DDA once used to be a big player in Delhi’s housing market charged with the mandate of providing affordable housing. But the charm of its housing schemes has been withering away.

Speaking to ThePrint, a senior DDA official, who did not wish to be named, pinned the reason behind this on the agency’s “business-as-usual approach” — one that depended on its past popularity.

Elaborating on the shortcomings that were pointed out by applicants who have surrendered DDA flats in the past, the senior official said that in flats in far-off locations such as Narela and Rohini, high pricing, lack of connectivity and quality, and inadequate size of dwellings were among the reasons behind the gradual decline in popularity of DDA flats.

“The housing market has changed, and homebuyers have options to choose from private players. So, our business-as usual-approach will not work any longer. We have to implement changes to establish ourselves as crucial players in the housing market,” the official added.