SDMC approves amnesty scheme

NEW DELHI: Giving relief to the traders running commercial establishments on roads notified for mixed land use, commercial and pedestrian shopping streets (roads that are six metres in width or less) under Delhi Master Plan 2021, the South Delhi Municipal Corporation has approved an amnesty scheme on payment of conversion charges for 10 years, on Wednesday.

Under the scheme, the agency has decided to waive off the penalty, which is 10 times the pending amount, and interest, which is 8% of the pending amount, on traders depositing the conversion charges for 10 years — from 2007 to 2017 — in lump sum.

The deadline for depositing the amount is March 31 this year.

SDMC mayor Kamaljeet Sehrawat said that scheme has been announced keeping the on-going sealing drive in mind.

“From our survey, it has been observed that the amount has not been paid by 60% traders misusing properties on notified roads while that the Supreme Court-appointed monitoring committee may plan to start sealing action in these areas as well, in future. However, if these traders pay the conversion and one-time parking fees then they won’t face any sealing action,” said Sehrawat.

However, the ongoing sealing drive initiated by the monitoring committee in December, has nothing to do with ‘conversion charges on notified roads’ and is only for those who have not paid “use conversion charge” for misuse of property.

Clarifying the difference between use conversion charges and conversion charges, a senior SDMC official said, “The ‘use conversion charges’ are paid on properties designated for certain use in DDA’S zonal plan and later it is misused.”

“While the ‘conversion charges’ are paid on roads, which were purely residential but later notified in Delhi Master Plan 2021 as mixed land use streets, notified commercial and notified pedestrian shopping streets (road less than 6 m in width),” said the official.