New Delhi, Oct. 6 -- A House for Mr. Biswas, written by the acclaimed novelist V.S. Naipaul, tells the poignant story of a man's struggles to find his place in society as he dreams of owning his own house. The story of hundreds of thousands of house aspirants in India is no less heart-rending.

Though the contribution of the real estate sector in meeting the housing needs of society has been significant, it is estimated that the aspirations of lakhs who signed contracts and made payments to buy a house have been bogged down in a quagmire of unfinished projects, insolvencies, allegations of fraud, diversion of funds and prolonged litigation. The confidence of homebuyers has been eroded.

As reported, Union housing minister Manohar Lal Khat...