The Delhi Assembly on Friday adopted a resolution calling for immediate transfer of Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to the government after the ruling Aam Aadmi Party MLAs affirmed the land-owning body should be answerable to a democratically-elected government rather than the Lieutenant-Governor.
Moving the resolution, AAP MLA from Burari Sanjeev Jha said the DDA had failed to serve the objective for which it was established. It had, so far, constructed 3.94 lakh houses in the Capital, while an estimated 60 lakh people living in unauthorised colonies urgently needed the housing facility, he added.
Pointing to the difficulties faced by the Delhi government in the absence of control over the crucial land resource, Mr. Jha said it had to make a request to the DDA every time it intended to embark on a project requiring land.
“This situation makes a crippling impact on initiatives for people’s welfare.”
The AAP legislator said while the land pooling policy had failed to render help in implementation of the government’s projects, the Master Plans too had not solved the problems of paucity of land and creation of civic amenities.
Sangam Vihar MLA Dinesh Mohaniya said Delhi was the only State in the country that depended on an external agency for its development initiatives.
Even though the DDA had acquired land from urbanised villages, their residents had hardly benefited from the way the land-owning body was functioning, he added.
However, BJP MLA Om Prakash Sharma said the DDA was a statutory body created by an Act in 1957. Since Delhi does not have full Statehood, the title of the land vested in the President and the rights were exercised by the L-G, he added.
When Mr. Sharma, who represents Vishwas Nagar constituency, said the DDA could not be transferred to the Delhi government, the ruling party MLAs took a strong exception and said they wanted a favourable decision on the subject without delay.
Speaker Ram Niwas Goel put the resolution, moved as part of the private members’ business, to a voice vote and announced it as having been adopted when the overwhelming majority of members voted in its favour.
