With an occupancy rate of just over 10 per cent, various Delhi government agencies responsible for building flats for the economically weaker sections (EWS) are incurring huge losses. To tide over this situation, agencies like the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC) have now decided to sell the houses.
The task of building EWS houses was given to two agencies – the DSIIDC and the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB). While DUSIB has so far completed about 9,000 such houses in Dwarka, the DSIIDC, with around 13,820 dwelling units, has been assigned the maximum housing projects.
While agencies have received 50 per cent of the funds for the projects from the Centre under the now-discontinued Jawahar Lal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), recovering the remaining is turning out to be a big problem. “The other 50 per cent is to come from three parties – the beneficiaries, the land owning agencies, and the state government. While the Delhi government did allocate funds, the other parties have not. In fact, money from the beneficiaries can be completely ruled out as there are no occupants,” said a senior DSIIDC official, who is not authorised to speak to the media.
Keeping this in mind, the DSIIDC had sent a proposal to the state urban development department, in which it had sought to sell its vacant EWS flats to Central government agencies.
“We had sent a proposal in January, and will be pursuing the matter aggressively within the upcoming 15 days. Since rehabilitation of slums and JJ clusters will now be done through in-situ development, the government seems positive about selling these flats,” the official added.
Last year, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) had bought vacant flats which the DSIIDC had built at Narela Phase-II for relocation of industrial workers. This time, too, it plans to approach CISF, among other Central government agencies, to sell these EWS flats. “Among DSIIDC flats, about 2,500 have been occupied so far in areas like Bapraula, Bawana, and Narela.
“People from the urban poor category are unwilling to come owing to lack of employment opportunities and facilities,” said a Delhi government official.
Another important reason for these flats lying vacant is the absence of a new allotment policy. The Delhi Slum and JJ Cluster Rehabilitation and Relocation Policy, 2016, is yet to be approved and notified by the Delhi government.
