NEW DELHI: In what could be considered a Diwali gift for the homeless and slum dwellers, Delhi government on Friday announced that it would construct 89,400 flats before 2025 for the economically weaker sections of society.
The decision was taken in a meeting of Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) chaired by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal to transform the lives of the homeless who spend most of their lives without a proper home, which affects their quality of life and, later, also impacts their children.
Architects would be appointed as consultants for the project in the next two months. The flats would be constructed in three phases over 237 acres with the deadline being between 2022 and 2025. The meeting was also attended by DUSIB vice-chairperson Satyendar Jain, urban development department chief Renu Sharma and other members of the board.
“Jahan Jhuggi Wahin Makaan is the flagship policy of Delhi government. We have to ensure that the construction of the EWS flats for in situ rehabilitation of people should be completed within the given timeline so that we can provide shelter to every poor in Delhi,” Kejriwal said. Most of these flats would be constructed to ensure in situ development of slums.
DUSIB member Bipin Rai said that it was decided in the meeting that the EWS flats would be constructed on vacant land owned by the board. “Out of 221 acres available with DUSIB, 115 acres is currently being considered for construction of the houses. The land use will be changed by the municipal corporations or Delhi Development Authority,” Delhi government said in a statement.
The project would also be carried out on land from where people have been shifted. In the first phase, 41,400 houses would be constructed by 2022 at a cost of Rs 3,312 crore (Rs 8 lakh per unit). In the second phase, 18,000 houses would be built, while 30,000 EWS flats would be constructed in the third phase. The buildings would be multi-storeyed. Five separate tenders would be called with 8,000 flats in each lot. The time frame for construction in the first phase would be 24 months.
The project would be executed and implemented by DUSIB. Delhi government is preparing a detailed rehabilitation and construction plan in this regard.