Kathmandu. The Ministry of Infrastructure Development has registered a bill on the Building Act 2083 in the Federal Parliament Secretariat with the aim of ensuring the right of every citizen to housing.

The bill to amend the Building Act-2055 BS drafted under the leadership of Infrastructure Development Minister Sunil Lamsal has been registered at the Federal Parliament Secretariat.

As per the government’s announcement, the new Building Act Bill has been registered in the Parliament Secretariat with the aim of ensuring housing for every citizen and their families. The Bill proposes to guarantee housing for low-income families and ensure safe and orderly housing for middle-income families.

The bill registered by the Ministry has proposed to provide the necessary river-based and nature-based construction materials free of cost to the first-time Nepali citizens to build their houses according to the type design and standards set by the government. Similarly, the provision of providing the necessary natural materials free of cost to the citizens who apply for the construction of cowsheds has been incorporated.

The bill proposes to provide a grant of up to Rs 75,000 from the federal government and Rs 25,000 from the provincial government to ensure housing for the poor and indigent citizens. The bill also includes a provision that the government will relocate the disaster, unsafe and risky settlements to safer places and construct new houses.

The new Building Act and Regulations proposes to construct and provide safe, earthquake-resistant and smart homes that meet basic standards for middle-income citizens. Such houses, costing between Rs 20 lakh and Rs 75 lakh, are proposed to be in the plinth area of 900 to 1,300 plinths.

It has been proposed that the citizens can get such houses through concessional loans. Arrangements have been made to provide the house by paying an initial payment of Rs 5 lakh in advance and paying a monthly installment of Rs 11,000 for 15 years.

Similarly, the government has proposed to pay Rs 15,000 per month on the advance payment of Rs 10 lakh, Rs 20,000 per month on Rs 15 lakh, Rs 30,000 per month on Rs 20 lakh advance and Rs 35,000 per month on 25 lakhs in advance.

The government has introduced the new Building Act with the objective of legally ensuring the right to housing of every Nepali citizen by incorporating provisions ranging from guarantee of housing to middle income families to safe and well-managed houses.