Bhubaneswar: After receiving 4,833 applications for just 90 flats developed under its affordable housing project in Patia, Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) is working out a detailed mechanism to conduct a transparent lottery for allotment of the low-income group (LIG) apartments.According to a recent BDA proposal on the modalities for the allotment of the units, the unprecedented response translates into more than 53 applicants competing for every available dwelling unit.The project, developed under the Housing for All policy by a private developer on govt-assigned land in Patia, comprises 50 Type-I and 40 Type-II flats priced at Rs 15.5 lakh and Rs 14.7 lakh, respectively. With such a large number of applications, the BDA officials admitted that scrutiny of every application before the draw would be a cumbersome and time-consuming exercise.In its proposal, the authority has suggested treating all applications as provisionally valid for the purpose of the lottery and carrying out detailed verification only for those selected through the draw. “We have never encountered such a huge response for an affordable housing project of this scale,” a senior BDA official said.Officials said the authority was considering a multi-layered lottery exercise because of the different categories of applicants. “We are putting in place a mechanism to ensure complete transparency in the selection process,” said Shubham Saxena, BDA vice-chairman.As per the proposed framework, a serving or retired judicial officer may be invited as an independent observer to oversee the lottery. Students from a nearby school for the visually impaired may be involved in drawing the lots, while selected applicants will be allowed to witness the process. The exercise is also proposed to be livestreamed on social media.The proposal further provides for the reservation of up to 40% of the flats for eligible applicants covered under the Urban Slum Household Area Survey, while preference will be given to persons with disabilities who are beneficiaries for the allotment of suitable ground-floor units.Stakeholders say the high demand is an indicator of the strong need for affordable houses in Bhubaneswar.Officials said the final modalities will be adopted after considering public suggestions and objections. Once approved, the lottery will determine provisional beneficiaries, following which their income, residence and other eligibility documents will be verified before issuance of allotment letters.