Comprehensive revamp of NTR Townships, GO issued

Municipal Administration & Urban Development, Government of Andhra Pradesh on Thursday announced a comprehensive revamp of the NTR Smart Townships Scheme.

The decision is expected to streamline the development of MIG layouts and address the challenges faced in plot allotment and revenue realisation.

The revised guidelines, issued through G.O.Ms.No.148 by the MA&UD Department, is aimed at accelerating project implementation while ensuring better transparency and responsiveness to public demand.

Originally envisioned to provide affordable housing with quality infrastructure to the state’s growing middle class, the NTR Smart Townships initiative has faced sluggish progress. Of the 74 approved projects across 66 Assembly Constituencies, only 36 have been launched so far.

The uptake, however, has remained far below expectations — with just 29 percent of the plots sold and only 23 percent of the expected revenue realised.

The low response, according to the government, stems from several structural limitations in the existing framework. These include the lack of plot choice due to allocation through lotteries, restrictive eligibility criteria such as the ₹18 lakh income cap, a one-plot-per-family rule, and the absence of any price differentiation based on plot size or location. Officials noted that these factors have significantly limited interest among potential beneficiaries and slowed down the monetisation of state-developed layouts.

To overcome these bottlenecks, the government has now directed that all new applications under launched layouts be stopped with immediate effect. All pending applications will be disposed of through one-time lotteries. Importantly, unsold plots in these layouts will now be auctioned, duly following Development Authority norms and government instructions. This will facilitate mobilisation of funds for taking up the infrastructure development in these colonies.

In a more substantial shift, non-launched MIG projects under the scheme will be re- purposed as commercial housing layouts. These will be taken up by the respective Urban Development Authorities (UDAs) as general layouts, in accordance with prevailing UDA rules or as per further instructions from the government. The aim is to ensure faster project execution and a more market-aligned approach in developing new housing layouts.

Commenting on the revised policy, Mr. S. Suresh Kumar, Principal Secretary to Government, MA&UD, said "the MIG/NTR Smart Townships were launched with the intention of delivering well-planned, affordable housing to middle-income families. But as we moved forward, it became clear that the model needed to evolve to match people’s expectations and ground realities."

He said these changes reflect that learning and they will make the scheme more agile, transparent, and financially viable — benefitting both the public and the state.