The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has extended the last date of application for its 2017 housing scheme till September 11 following poor response from the public. The Hindu visited some of the DDA complexes in Rohini for a reality check.
Most of the people living in these flats complained about the lack of basic amenities, poor conveyance and negligible maintenance work.
The Janta flats in Sector 4, Rohini, which are almost four kilometres away from the main road, bore a deserted look.
The residents said only a handful of the few hundred flats were occupied.
Waterlogged roads
Lakshmi, who has been staying there for the last one year, said, “The living conditions here are not suitable. The biggest problem is the access to the main road. The intermediary lane is a long stretch and it becomes difficult to use it at night. The condition of the road is also poor and it gets easily waterlogged during monsoon.”
Talking about the other basic amenities, the mother of two said, “In spite of having a park in front of my house, my children have difficulty in using it as it is in a poor shape. Safety is also an issue as there are no guards present.”
Appeal to govt
Residents of the LIG flats in Sector 29, Rohini, complained about lack of transport facilities.
“Conveyance is a huge problem here. At times when we are lucky, we get a lift from someone. Else, we need to walk almost for three kilometres before we find proper means of transport. We request the government to at least make bus services available for us,” said Kiran, who has been living there for the last four years.
She added there was also no medical facility available in the vicinity.
Residents also alleged that no lift had not been installed in any of the buildings despite there being provisions for the same.
Open drains
“There are open drains in front of my house. Construction debris has been lying around for a long time now. Even the parks have turned into jungles now. What is the point of taking these flats if we are not provided with a liveable environment?” said Sultana, another resident.
Even residents of the HIG complex in Sector 29, Rohini, which looked visibly clean, complained about similar problems.
No streetlights
“The streetlights here have been operational for a few months now. Till date, no one has come to fix them. Additionally, around 80 buttons in the lift have not been operational for the last two months. Even though the counsellor was informed, no measures have been taken to fix them,” said Shubham Bharadwaj, a member of the residents’ welfare association.
The residents also complained about the lack of proper transport facilities.
“People living here need to have their own transport. Else, they will have walk for around three kilometres before they can avail a bus. Even the Rithala metro station is quite a distance away,” said Mr. Bharadwaj.
Poor response
This year, the DDA has put up around 12,000 flats for sale, of which 384 are janta flats, 404 middle-income group (MIG) flats and 87 high-income group (HIG) flats. The remaining 11,197 flats are the one-bedroom lower income group (LIG) flats.
Officials said the authority had received just about 8,000 applications so far. Earlier, the last date for submitting the applications for the draw of lots was August 11.