The Indian Express (Delhi Edition)
Delhi’s ‘model’ villages
In 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off a new scheme under which MPS had to ‘adopt’ and transform a village each — from ensuring proper roads to water supply and sanitation. How has the initiative fared in Delhi? The Indian Express heads to a fe
IN 2014, as part of the Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Delhi’s seven MPS — all from the ruling BJP — picked a village each under their constituency and were tasked with ensuring its development: proper roads, water supply or sanitation among other things.
The timeline? Ensure one ‘model’ village by 2016 and five such villages by 2024. Fast forward 10 years, and it appears not much has improved on the ground — many of these villages still lack basic necessities.
Moreover, a statement by the Centre, issued by the PIB in August 2023, shows that as of August 3 of that year, no village was adopted in Delhi in the last five years — under phases IV-VIII between 2019-2020 and 202324 — based on information uploaded by the respective states on the SAGY portal (saanjhi.gov.in). Going by the statement, a total of 12 such villages in Delhi were part of the scheme between 2014-16, 2016-19 and 2017-19.
The Indian Express visited some ‘adopted’ villages across Delhi’s seven Lok Sabha constituencies for a spot check.
SOUTH DELHI
BHATTI MINES,
Situated near Asola Bhatti Wildlife sanctuary, the village was adopted by BJP MP Ramesh B hid uri. due to the area’ s richness in red sand and silica, most residents — refugees from Pakistan — used to work in the construction industry until the government banned mining in the 1990s — leading to job loss. They now travel to Noida in search of work.
“Kaam-dhanda nahi hai yahan pe... sadkein bhi nahi hai aur naaliyaan bhi nahi hai,” said Anil Rajput, a labourer. “The government has completely neglected us... it’s like we don’t exist.”
Ankush Kumar (19), who studied in the area’s government school and is now enrolled in IGNOU, raised concerns about the school’s poor state. “My whole family studied here... there has been no improvement in infrastructure — fans don’t work and the school turns into a swimming pool every time it rains. it has no library or a proper playground ...”
Others complained about the ‘monkey menace’ due to the village’s proximity to the sanctuary. “There are more monkeys than people here. They bite the kids sometimes, and we have to rush them to the hospital,” said 58-year-old Rama Rani.
Residents also lamented the absence of a bank in their vicinity, forcing them to travel to Chhattarpur to withdraw money. They also complained of “filthy” public toilets and long and frequent electricity cuts, especially during summer.
MP speak: Bidhuri did not respond when contacted for comment.
SABHAPUR, NORTHEAST DELHI
Two years ago, the road in front of Nitin Sahu’s house in Sabhapur village, and his office where he used to offer DJ and band-baaja registrations, was clogged with sewage water after a drain overflowed.
Pointing to a giant puddle of murky water, the 32-year-old said, “... Residents of some localities pooled in money to get roads in front of their houses elevated, as no resolution was provided even after complaining to multiple authorities... Some residents of my locality, however, were not ready to pool in money so we could not get the road in front of my house fixed.”
Located on the outskirts of the Northeast Delhi constituency, the village was adopted by actorturned-politician and two-time MP Manoj Tiwari — also the only MP in Delhi to be re-fielded for the Lok Sabha polls — in the initial phases of the scheme.
The village mostly has a Brahmin-dominated populace, and multi-storey houses dominate its landscape. However, it sorely lacks sanitation facilities.
“It’s disheartening to see the living conditions become so unbearableinavillageiwasbornin... I had to shut my office because the dirty water had started entering the premises,” said Sahu, adding that he faced significant losses for months before he shifted his business online.
Omprakash Jaiswal, who runs a juice shop, chimed in: “Roads are in bad shape and there are no streetlights... We switch on the lights of the nearby mandir to keep the roads illuminated.”
The village has only one senior secondary government school, which has a few classrooms, and is filled beyond capacity as students from nearby villages are also enrolled here.
MP speak: When contacted, Tiwari said: “I adopted two villages in my constituency, Sabhapur and Khadipur. We got work done like (installing) streetlights, (laying) roads and sewer lines in the first phase... But there were several hurdles as the government in the state and Centre is different...”
He added, “... Due to a lack of support from the state government, MLAS and local departments, the project could not see a successful implementation. So, I decidedtofocusontheentireconstituency instead of just one-two villages... Look at Northeast Delhi now, major initiatives have taken place on colony roads... a tripledeckmetroline-cum-flyoverisbeingbuilt...rs14,000crorehasbeen spent(onwork)—higherthanthe entirebudgetofthedelhigovernment for infrastructure...”
PILLANJI, NEW DELHI
Adopted in 2014 by Meenakshi Lekhi, a two-time BJP MP and Minister of State for External Affairs, Pillanji is located near the bustling shopping hub of Sarojini Nagar and is the sole urban village in the constituency.
Meghmati (64), who has lived there all her life, was all praise for improvements initiated by Lekhi, particularly the repair of roads. “It’s a village situated in a diplomatic area; no issues are being faced here,” she said.
Others begged to differ and said the MP didn’t fulfill many promises such as construction of public toilets and the establishment of a community hall.
“... The main problem here is unauthorised construction... many people have built sixstorey homes... making the already congested lanes even more cramped... Residents had highlighted this to Lekhi when she adopted the village but no action has been taken so far,” claimed Amar Pradhan (22).
MP speak: Lekhi said she adopted Pillanji as well as Qutab Garh in Northwest Delhi (between 2014 and 2019). “... I adoptedpillanjigaon andensured its development... Earlier, there was open sewerage, no proper roads or streetlights... Under this scheme, using my MPLAD fund, proper roads and sewer lines were laid and streetlights installed... Besides, a dispensary was developed in the area for residents...”
She also blamed the AAP government for not supporting the central government scheme and said, “... Qutab Garh does not fall under my constituency, so I could only spend Rs 25 lakh for installation of streetlights and open gyms... but... I roped in the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) through which beekeeping and mustard and wheat cultivation were started... I resolved the village’s water and sewerage issues by rejuvenating a pond through the Amrit Sarovar scheme...”
Lekhi added that development work continuing in the village under L-G Vinai Saxena was started under the SAGY. Saxena was the then KVIC chairman.
GHOGA, SINGOLA
NORTHWEST & NORTHEAST DELHI
The urban village of Ghoga was adopted by BJP’S Chandni Chowk MP Dr Harsh Vardhan in the initial phase. Residents, primarily engaged in dairy farming or factory work, expressed grievances regarding the absence of essential facilities such as medical services and sanitation amenities. They also highlighted the deteriorating condition of roads and streetlights.
“There is no dispensary in the entire village; we have to travel to Narela to get even the most basic medicines, which becomes a huge issue during emergencies,” said Shashi Bharadwaj, a 16-year-old student. She added that during monsoon, roads get blocked while drains overflow.
“The roads were constructed a long time ago but are now dilapidated. Despite claims of adopting the village, no visits have been made by those in authority,” alleged Suniel Sharma, an MCD executive engineer who has lived in the village for 15 years. He acknowledged that some improvements were made during the tenure of BJP councillor Mohan Bharadwaj, including drain construction and enhanced electricity supply.
Poultry farmer Ram Kumar Rathore (80) said: “Harsh Vardhan got streetlight pillars and cement benches installed, but no significant progress occurred. Due to lack of maintenance, many streetlights no longer function and most benches are broken.”
Singola was another village adopted by the MP. Here, residents had a litany of complaints — dilapidated roads, lack of a secondary school, no Metro connectivity, the absence of a community centre, and a mosquito issue due to a dirty pond in the area.
“We don’t have a community centre... it becomes an issue when villagers want to celebrate a festival or organise a wedding. There is also a lot of unauthorised construction taking place here,” said 72-year-old Kishan Prasad.
“Cameras were installed in the village, but hardly work. In the event of a crime or any untoward incident, we demand CCTV footage but are often told cameras near the site are not working,” said Hansraj Hans, a farmer.
MP speak: Harsh Vardhan said, “... It is not our responsibility to update the (SAGY) dashboard and websites... but a lot of development has taken place in the villages I adopted...”
He added, “There aren’t many villages in Chandni Chowk, so I adopted villages in other constituencies like Dheerpur, Ghoga, Singola... Several developmental works like constructing a bus stand, a temple have taken place... There is need for all departments like MCD, DDA and Delhi government to work together to make more progress...”
CHILLA VILLAGE, EAST DELHI
Residents of the village, adopted by then MP Maheish Girri, offered mixed accounts on work that was carried out.
Uttam Vishwas, who has lived in Chilla for the past 18 years, said streetlights, which were previously absent in the area, were installed during Girri’s tenure. But Ompal Singh, 35, pointed out that CCTVS were installed along the streets only about two-three months ago; about a year ago, the roads were also built, he said.
Anuv Kumar, a resident of three years, highlighted the lack of clean drinking water: “It’s a daily struggle for us to collect water from Jal Board tankers that visit the area every morning.”
Santosh, a mother of five who runs a gol gappa stall, expressed her worry about her children’s health due to the polluted water supply.
MP speak: Girri said, “... I do not know about the present situation as I have now shifted to Gujarat but back then, the biggest issue was lack of a baarat ghar which I had solved by opening one in the village... Other issues faced were the lack of a sewer line which used to cause overflows and water supply issues — these were resolved during my tenure.”
Political blame game
When The Indian Express contacted incumbent BJP MP of East Delhi, Gautam Gambhir, on whether he had adopted a village, there was no response.
West Delhi MP Parvesh Verma claimed he adopted Daulatpur village in the last five years and before 2019, he had adopted Jharoda village. Citing a lack of support from the ruling government in executing work, Verma claimed, “... Hundreds of initiatives have been taken up in these villages... but 80% of the work comes under MCD and departments of the Delhi government... I’ve raised the matter and written at least 30 letters to the government, but to no avail...”
Northwest Delhi MP Hans Raj Hans said, “... I adopted several villages in my area like Qutab Garh and Mundka...” On work that he carried out, he said, “A large number of students are active in sports in my constituency... so I developed a sports centre. I also developed a homeopathic centre and revamped an existing park...”
There was no official response from the Delhi government on the MPS’ claims that work was being hindered due to “non-cooperation”.
However, the AAP, in its response, said, “BJP MPS promised development of villages based on funds they get from the Centre. If MPS want funds from the Delhi government, what will be their contribution? The Delhi government has already spent thousands of crores on villages and unauthorisedcolonies.thereport card of BJP MPS has been known to BJP, that’s why 6 out of 7 MPS have been shunted out...”
Meanwhile, an MP, on condition of anonymity, cited the pandemic as another reason villages could not be adopted as MPLAD funds were halted in 2020.