The flat-roofed 20 sq meter house will cost Rs 32,000 (EUR500 - GBP440 -
US$715 ), can be built in a week and came about from an aim to deliver a
viable package for beneficiaries of the Indira Awaas Yojana shelter
rehabilitation scheme in Tata's native India. The scheme provides Rs
40,000 per house for people below the poverty line, scheduled castes and
tribes, freed bonded laborers and ex-servicemen.
There is absolutely no doubt that the human condition thrives on challenge. Fresh from creating the world's cheapest car, the US$2500 Tata Nano,
Tata Corporation is now intending to create the world's cheapest house.
If Tata can hit its targets, the scheme will bring much greater
access to shelter for millions of Indians. India is world's second most
populous nation with 1.21 billion people and it is growing at such a
rate that it is expected to pass China (currently 1.34 billion) by 2030.
It has already surpassed China for the number of people who live in
poverty (800 million people).
