Can’t shift to Narela or Bawana, had paid for flats in Dwarka a decade ago, say Delhi’s Kali Bari Mandir Colony residents

 Locals at Kali Bari Mandir Colony show the eviction notices served to them by the Delhi Development Authority.   | Photo Credit: SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA

Fifty-year-old Ram Kishore is worried, just like other residents of Kali Bari Mandir Colony in central Delhi, after they were served an eviction notice by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) all of a sudden earlier this month, a move he described as “unjustified” on the part of the authorities.

According to the locality’s residents, they have been told that they would be shifted to Narela or Bawana against the original promise of rehabilitating them in Dwarka, a decade after they made the initial payment for dwelling units in the area.

However, they said the project is yet to take off and they don’t know when they would be getting the houses they were promised back in 2013.

Several residents claimed that they had paid about ₹1,12,000 for each dwelling unit in addition to a maintenance fee of ₹30,000 to the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), an agency tasked with improving the quality of life of slum dwellers by implementing residential plans on behalf of the Delhi government.

Despite repeated attempts, DDA and DUSIB officials could not be reached for comments.

Mr. Kishore, who is an electrician by profession, said shifting to Narela or Bawana will wreak havoc on their lives as the area is over 40 km away from their current location, and they have set uptheir (DELETE)shops near the Kali Bari temple. “Leaving this area for Narela, which lacks connectivity, is not an option for us,” he said.

Getting emotional over the thought of leaving the place, he said his father and grandfather had worked as labourers when the area was being spruced up in the past decades. “We have built Delhi. Now, they are throwing us out of the city,” he added.

Another resident, Ramadevi, 57, said her family’s livelihood depends on the temple. “How can they ask us to go all the way to Narela, which lacks connectivity, schools and other facilities?” she said.

She added that she does not have any problem in leaving the area, but the authorities should at least shift them to a place where they could find jobs to sustain their lives.

“They took money to settle us in Dwarka but never gave us keys to those flats,” she said, showing some documents that she said were given by the authoritiesagainst the payment they made for the dwelling units in 2013.