Faultlines in the Foundation

Every now and then, there is a report of a building collapse in some unauthorised colony or the other in Delhi. Disasters such as these—besides fire, waterlogging, floods, electrocution deaths, etc.—are erratic but frequent in the national capital. The reasons are, mainly, rampant and unmanageable illegal constructions flouting all possible building construction regulations, including the most important structural safety norms. To cater to the ever-increasing demand for housing in the capital city, the building mafia has been on overdrive for the past couple of decades and has continued with illegal constructions in every possible nook and corner of the city, with scant respect even for ASI-protected monuments spread across the length and breadth of Delhi. It has also stressed other associated resources. There is an increased volume of vehicles, which Delhi roads are unable to handle. Resultant pollution is detrimental to human health, along with the ever-increasing demand for water and electricity to accommodate a huge number of people who flock here in search of better economic opportunities. On average, 7–8 lakh people per year come and settle in Delhi from neighbouring countries besides various Indian states.

Encroachment of government land, plus illegal constructions with help from local land pimps under the patronage of local politicians and in connivance with corrupt municipal officials, has turned the capital into an unliveable ticking bomb, waiting to explode. Delhi lies in seismic zone IV, which is prone to earthquakes. Any earthquake of a magnitude higher than 6.5 will cause havoc, as several structurally weak buildings will collapse, putting countless lives at risk.

Originally a conglomerate of 289 villages, Delhi still continues with the age-old 'Laldora' concept initiated during the British era. This gives leeway, in the form of exemptions from urban planning rules, national building codes, and construction norms, which are not enforced within the original village premises. Thus, the rules of the Municipal Corporation that are applicable to the rest of Delhi do not apply to these 289 odd villages. Taking advantage of the existing confusion in the administrative setup of the national capital, the illegal construction mafia has jumped in, grabbing the opportunity to make a quick buck by carrying out random construction without any checks or balances across the city. Villages like Pillanji (adjacent to Sarojini Nagar) or Shahpur Jat (adjacent to Siri Fort), being in high demand, have come up with many dangerous high-rise buildings—practically clumsy and filthy ghettos—without any safety for the residents.

This article especially intends to address and focus on: a) the lurking disaster of building collapses, awaiting unsuspecting buyers—rather, scapegoats—looking for a roof over their heads; and b) ways and means to overcome and deal with this sensitive problem, and how best the regularisation of all these 1700-odd colonies can be, or should be, done.

The answer to the first problem can easily be addressed by the concerned municipal staff, along with the custodians of law, who are currently in a state of couldn't-care-less attitude. One of the most important criteria for success in this regard will come at the cost of 100 per cent integrity of all the concerned MCD individuals—such as the beldar, JE, AE, Executive Engineer, SE, and so on—in each municipal zone, who are actually the first respondents responsible for noticing any illegal constructions in their area and initiating requisite punitive actions with zero tolerance.

During UPA I & II, the then CM of Delhi distributed regularisation papers, through the then chairperson of the coalition government, to about 1,659 unauthorised colonies with much ado and fanfare. However, the matter ended there, with the main aim being to gain the desired political mileage. There was no planning as to how these unauthorised colonies would actually be regularised! This continued until the then LG of Delhi stepped into the scene and tried a novel method to decongest and create proper, safe city homes by converting and transforming these illegal unauthorised colonies into modern and liveable ones, befitting the parameters of a national capital. He involved several world-class town and country planners, besides experts drawn from Delhi's own SPA (School of Planning & Architecture), and reputed private builders like Tatas, Shapoorji, L&T, Raheja, DLF, etc., to completely reconstruct each of these unauthorised colonies one by one in situ.

A detailed plan was drawn after several marathon discussions with experts. It would take approximately two years to reconstruct a colony properly planned with all due amenities of a modern colony befitting a national capital, that would also be structurally safe to withstand high-magnitude earthquakes. As the majority of house owners in these unauthorised colonies would not have intended—or been financially capable—of paying for the cost of reconstruction or redevelopment, it was intended to make it a Public-Private Partnership (PPP), wherein the government would allocate some colonies to each of the willing private partner builders. A vacant plot of land would be allocated to the builder to construct temporary residences with proper facilities such as water and electricity connections to house all the households from the colony for a couple of years during reconstruction. The government would not have to pay anything extra to the private builder, and would instead authorise additional FAR (Floor Area Ratio), thereby allowing the builder to build and manage commercial areas that would supplement the construction cost of the colonies. Provisions were laid down for every household in each colony to contribute and pay token money—a small percentage of the total cost of their new flat—that would be handed over to each occupant as per their original plot size. This contribution would not cover the total construction cost but only a part, while the major portion would be borne by the private partner, who would recover expenses from the commercial built-up area permitted through the additional FAR.

It is clear that only with clueful, pointed, and ruthless implementation of the planned in situ infrastructure development of unauthorised colonies—through public-private partnership—can the capital city of Delhi be transformed into a safe, modern, and inclusive urban space. Sooner the better—and safer.

The writer is a senior IAF officer with long experience of civil administration in government in various disciplines/ministries. Views expressed are personal