Organising the Capital

On several occasions between 2008 and 2012, the Delhi government made announcements to regularise around 1,900 unauthorised colonies spread across the length and breadth of the national capital. In fact, on one occasion, some 1,600 certificates were also distributed to respective unauthorised colonies by the President of one political party. However, things didn't improve thereafter. It is important to know the actual issue. Almost all of these unauthorised colonies did come up in the most haphazard manner in all possible localities of Delhi, including many nearby posh colonies such as Vasant Vihar, GK I & II, etc. The VIP areas of the Luteyans Delhi were also not spared with several such unauthorised colonies in close proximity of these areas. The reasons for such proliferation are manifold. The prime reason is the necessity of these unauthorised colonies. Every household requires domestic help, drivers, washerman, etc., – a culture from British times that we are yet to cut loose. Then there is vote bank politics and also the on-ground breed for accommodation issue of the ever-growing migrants keen to get a foothold somehow in the glittering national capital. Not only from the inside but even from outside of the country. Delhi has illegal migrants from Pakstan, Bangladesh, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Afganistan, etc. Delhi Police has had a tough time trying to deport these unauthorised settlers as per orders from the court. Majority of the migrants are from within the country, who for some reason came in search of jobs, or as labourers from east, central or other parts of the country mainly to earn bread in the construction of NCR region, of Housing, Metro railways, National Highways, et al.

Once in the city, they would adopt all measures to somehow stay put in the city permanently. Even if it means that compromising their own safety and security. There have been several catastrophic accidents of collapsing buildings in Delhi due to unscrupulous elements building houses by flouting all housing norms. But not much has changed due to this important life-endangering factor. Due to high demand and the strong lure of being able to stay put in the city which offers many freebies such as free water, electricity, good medical care and almost free education. It's sad that all such facilities are not available in their native domiciles. This justifies the strong migratory inclinations and attractions to be in Delhi.

It is interesting to enquire why this regulation attempt failed in the past. To understand this in layman's term, the difference between a regular and an unauthorised colony needs to be understood. It is basically the approved planning of the colony, proper facilities/amenities for the colony that makes the difference. In unauthorised colonies, growth in an unplanned manner results in inaccessibility to emergency services like Ambulance and Fire tenders, etc., making them vulnerable to all kinds of disasters. Basic civic/municipal amenities are also not provided by authorities in these colonies simply because they are unauthorised. Though on humanitarian grounds, water and electricity connections have been provided in almost all of these unauthorised colonies, including the voter IDs to all residents. With a humongous population of about 1.3 crores and still counting, Delhi is among the most populated and also the most polluted cities in the world today. It has about 457 odd planned colonies and about 3,000 unauthorised colonies. The number of unauthorised colonies has been ever-growing – from 1,900, it has now reached about 3,000. Another reason for the steady increase in numbers is due to ever-shifting of the cut-off date to regularise illegal colonies. It was 1,400 in 1999, about 1,700 in 2004, about 1,900 when the cut off date was shifted/adjusted to 2006, all because of some political gain.

Without caring about the undue pressure it creates on the civic bodies of capital. Delhi currently is more than full, bursting from all seams and unable to take any more load. In fact, the very basics of any good city leave alone a capital city, are clean air, potable water, proper sewage system, all of which are scarce in Delhi now. About 60 per cent of sewage from the national capital is directly discharged into the Yamuna, converting the river into a filthy drain. Though Supreme Court passed an order in 2006 about maintaining the natural flow for the river so that it actually remains one by releasing a minimum of 4 MCU of water daily upstream near Wazirabad, the same has not been adhered to in lieu of meeting the ever-growing demand for potable water in NCR. It is often said that Delhi is between the ridge and the river, and can only survive if the ridge and the river are maintained well. Despite comprehensive awareness regarding Yamuna, the river is yet to be restored. The ridges (all three of them – North, Central and South) have been rapidly shrinking on the whims of the housing mafia to cater to ever-increasing housing requirements of the growing population of migrants, many illegal among them. The most fragile ecosystem of the Aravalies has also not been spared by the unscrupulous mafia who have illegally grabbed and constructed hundreds of illegal unauthorised colonies in the ridge land. DDA has more than 6,500 cases pending in different courts. Given these handicaps, the then government of Delhi, with all due intentions, could not fulfil the regularisation of these colonies. It couldn't be figured how to proceed ahead. Though the then Lt Governor of Delhi, Tejendra Khanna, had hit the nail and come out with an excellent solution (the only solution to this issue if one is interested to solve) but the political powers at that time did not care to heed to the same and lost the opportunity.

The solution to the regularisation process has to start with geospatial as well as an individual plus collective residents mapping of each of these colonies. Experts from town and country planning, architects, behavioural scientists, civic body representatives, all should sit together to chalk out the planning of each unauthorised colony carefully. Redevelopment is the only mantra for these. It has to be a Public-Private partnership which should be pressed into action for the redevelopment of all these 3,000 odd, unauthorised colonies in Delhi. It cannot be done by the government alone. Like the redevelopment of the (in)famous Kathputli colony, a temporary residential accommodation should be provided to the concerned residents of a colony being redeveloped in the nearby area and once the redevelopment process completes, they should be shifted back in their fully developed housing colony. Big Private developers will only come forward if they have their due share of nominal profit, which could be helped through the commercial space being generated in the re-development process in all such colonies. They should be given free hand in utilising the same towards meeting their expenses and generate minimum profit in the process. The Floor Area Ratio (FAR) can be significantly higher in these redevelopment colonies to break even the cost borne by the private developers.

(Ranjan Mukherjee is a senior IAF officer, former OSD to LG, Delhi. Views expressed are strictly personal)