The number of applications from Muscat to the Ministry of Housing (MoH) for residential plots was more than 121,300 till October 2012.
Of these, the MoH has okayed 10,724 applications.
This was revealed at the Municipal Council meeting held in Muscat on Sunday.
Eighty four per cent of the applicants are women, an MoH official said at the meeting.
H E Eng Sultan bin Hamdoon al Harthy, chairman of Muscat Municipality, was also present at the meeting.
Attendees were briefed on the challenges faced by MoH - like scarcity of land, increased demand and difficult terrain.
A senior ministry official informed the council that plans are in the pipeline to connect new residential plots with existing roads, said Ibrahim al Hassani, senior information officer at Muscat Municipality.
"The council meeting was also told that to deal with these challenges, MoH and Muscat Municipality will chalk out an urban development strategy which includes preparation of a land use map," he added.
The meeting reviewed recommendations to establish a central shopping centre and allocate land for this purpose.
It also stressed on the need to provide funds to deal with rainwater and flood protection and asked health and town planning departments to address issues faced by children.
© Muscat Daily 2013
