NEW DELHI: Delhi Development Authority proposes to establish a database of the 173 slum clusters that haven’t yet been surveyed in order to plan rehabilitation efforts or improve infra and civic services at the places in future.
DDA has initiated a fresh exercise for the empanelment of specialist organisations to conduct these surveys. The database will be created in accordance with Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna (Urban) requirements and used for determining the eligibility of slum dwellers for resettlement programmes.
Of the city’s 675 slum clusters that were in existence before 2006, 378 are on land belonging to DDA and central govt agencies. The rest are under the jurisdiction of Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board according to the survey undertaken in 2012. “In 2017, the central govt ordered DDA to carry out a survey of all JJ clusters in its jurisdiction. In the exercise, 205 jhuggis were surveyed and now the remaining 173 will be surveyed and this will be completed in six months,” said a DDA official.
Among the JJ camps to be surveyed are Lal Bagh Park near Laxmi Narayan Mandir, Sethi Camp, Indira Vikas Colony in Mukherjee Nagar and those near Outram Lines and Gurdwara Kingsway Camp.
The survey’s primary purpose is to evaluate the population and household count, document the residents’ status and qualification for resettlement or in-situ development schemes. Under DUSIB norms, JJ dwellers are eligible for EWS flats only if they can prove their residence in the particular slum before Jan 1, 2015. “The survey will also elicit information on the residents’ financial capacity to pay for housing and their access to housing finance,” the official said. “The selected agency will conduct visits to all jhuggis sited on DDA and central govt land across Delhi.”
The official, however, clarified that the survey wouldn’t mean in-situ rehabilitation schemes at all slums. “As per Delhi Master Plan norms, we require at least 2,000 sqm to redevelop an area. But even if there is no such scheme, DDA can provide better infra and civic services,” said the official.
The surveying agencies will carry out awareness drives for the survey and capture the data in electronic format, with the survey form being signed by the cluster dwellers. DDA said, “The selected agency will conduct a door-to-door beneficiary demand survey and collect data of households at JJ bastis in the prescribed form with photos of occupants. It will also identify new slums, if any, as per the guidelines of PMAY and conduct a demand survey of these slums.”
After entry of data collected during the surveys, the information will be presented to the community for ratification to prevent any households from being left out of the survey process and to maintain accuracy of information.
DDA has so far executed two in-situ projects at Jailorwala Bagh and Kalkaji and given possession to jhuggi dwellers of 1,400 and 3,024 EWS flats in these two locations, respectively. Work at Kathputli Colony is expected to finish this Dec.
