AAP govt wants change in rules to regularise illegal colonies

NEW DELHI : Arguing that it was difficult to legalise unauthorised colonies as per existing guidelines, the Aam Aadmi Party government wants the Centre to amend the 2008 notification that fixed the contours to regularise over 1,600 illegal colonies in the Capital.

Delhi urban development minister Satyendar Jain told reporters at Delhi secretariat that the state government was for regularising these colonies on ‘as is where is’ basis---the principle proposed by the Sheila Dikshit government but rejected by the then UPA government.

The development comes a day after the Delhi High Court told the Centre to take an “in-principle decision” on AAP government’s proposal to regularise unauthorised colonies, including Sainik farms. The court has given the central government four weeks to take a decision in the matter.

“In principle, all parties are on the same page that these colonies need to be regularised, then why the delay…the Centre wants all specific details at this stage. We have provided all the details available with us. In 2008, the decision was taken together by the Centre and state government. We demand the Centre to give in-principle agreement, we will distribute certificates within 24 hours,” Jain said.

Legalising unauthorised colonies is a long-pending issue with the then UPA government distributing provisional certificates to over 1,200 colonies ahead of the 2008 assembly elections.

However, the conditions in the 2008 notification—in terms of the colony boundaries, covered and open areas, cost of land in colonies that had come up on government land and development charges--- emerged as bottlenecks.