Centre approves DDA bid to allot land temporarily to hospitals to set up Covid infra

The Centre has approved the Delhi Development Authority’s proposal to allot land on a temporary basis to hospitals and medical institutions in the capital to set up Covid-related infrastructure, officials said on Thursday. The proposal was approved earlier by DDA chairperson L-G Anil Baijal.

Health infrastructure has come under immense pressure during the ongoing second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, with both government and private hospitals having to ramp up facilities to handle a large number of patients requiring hospitalisation.

“The DDA was receiving many requests from hospitals for allotment of land on a temporary basis to set up Covid-related infrastructure. The L-G approved and recommended it. The Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has approved the same,” a senior official said.

The proposal for temporary land allotment was examined by the DDA in consultation with the finance and law departments. It was found that such allotments needed approval and relaxation of the Nazul Rules, 1981, by the Central government.

A letter was sent by the DDA to the secretary of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs on May 5 for consideration and approval of the proposal, the official said.

As per the DDA’s letter, it has been receiving requests for the last six-seven months from government agencies, private hospitals, and charitable institutions for temporary allotment of its land for expansion of infrastructure to combat the Covid surge.

These include the Delhi government’s request for allotment of land near GTB Hospital for establishing an ICU facility and the East Delhi district magistrate’s request for allotment of an open ground at the CWG complex for setting up an oxygen generation plant, the letter stated.