The Dreams A-Lite Project: USD 1000 Homes: An Insight into a Proposed Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) Township to Address the Problem of Affordable Housing for the Urban Poor in India

Abstract

The provision of low cost housing to greater sections of the needy populace has been an issue of immense magnitude that policy formulators the world over have continued to grapple with. Over time, the problem has only amplified, thereby enhancing the pressing need for immediate intervention through innovative and sustainable solutions. Globally, and especially in emerging markets this gargantuan problem has reached epic proportions with over 320 million people bereft of access to basic housing. Woven around the thread of social innovation and entrepreneurship, this project is an in depth research study aimed at ultimately creating affordable housing solutions for the urban poor populace at large.  The endeavour of this research is to ascertain the response and purported feasibility of a proposed Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) Township, named Dreams A-Lite, to be constructed on the outskirts of the metropolitan city of Mumbai, India. Based upon the favourable findings of the research, the essence was to develop a self-sustaining, scalable and globally implementable business model that would eventually create Rs. 60,000 (USD 1,000) homes for 10 million people over the next 10 years. The Township outside Mumbai would serve as the prototype and launching pad for future projects across the country first and then even abroad. The research takes into cognizance the monthly incomes, number of earning family members, size of present dwellings and consumption choices and trends of sections of the urban poor living in Mumbai through a questionnaire based survey. Furthermore, in depth interviews and surveys on retailers and other companies who would be interested in establishing a foothold in the proposed township through the purchase of commercial and media space was also undertaken. Based on the research results, the proposed model assumes a self-sustaining hue on the back of the captive consumptive potential of the potential residents.

Key Words: Affordable, Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP), Business Model, India, Low Cost Housing, Self-sustaining, Social Innovation, Township, Urban Poor