NEW DELHI: The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has announced that 50% of the 2,800 flats at Kathputli Colony are nearing completion and will be allocated to allottees within this financial year. This initiative marks the first in-situ rehabilitation project in Delhi.
Officials stated that the concessionaire has submitted requests for the fire safety NoC and other necessary approvals to commence the allotments of the 1,400 EWS flats. “The fire department has identified a few deficiencies that the builder is currently addressing. Work to secure utility connections and permissions is ongoing. Once we receive the clearances, the flats will be allotted through a lottery system. The process for identifying eligible beneficiaries has already been completed,” commented a DDA official.
Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs, ML Khattar, reviewed the project’s status in August and instructed officials to resolve outstanding issues involving the builder, DDA, and the ministry. “The residential blocks are primarily completed. Ongoing work includes facilities such as fire exits, community halls, and shared spaces,” said Rajiv Babbar, a DDA member and BJP official.
The project, executed under a Public-Private Partnership model, began in 2009 on a 5.2-hectare (12.89-acre) site in West Delhi when the DDA assigned land to a developer. Before this, encroachments by jhuggi dwellers had persisted for approximately 50 years, housing puppeteers, musicians, sculptors, wood carvers, weavers, and craftsmen along with their families.
A decision was made to relocate the residents to a transit camp in Anand Parbat, which was completed in April 2013. The transition took place from 2013 to 2017, despite opposition from some local residents. Out of 3,292 eligible individuals, 2,800 were relocated to the transit camps, and the remainder received DDA-built flats in Narela. Following several challenges and court interventions, construction resumed in 2018, aiming to establish 2,800 flats in ten-story towers. However, the initial two-year deadline has long been surpassed, with delays primarily attributed to legal disputes initiated by residents and NGOs.
