The Parliament on Tuesday passed a Bill to extend by three years the protection given to unauthorised constructions in slums, farm houses and other colonies in the national capital from facing any official action.
The National Capital Territory of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Second (Amendment) Act, 2023, extends the protection given to unauthorised buildings for a period of three years from January 1, 2024 till December 31, 2026.
The Bill was passed by a voice vote in the Lok Sabha after a brief discussion in which only three members participated, including one from the Opposition. This was the first Bill to be taken up after the suspension of 49 Opposition MPs from the Lower House earlier in the day.
Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, while replying to the debate, said that the Centre had introduced the PM-UDAY scheme in October 2019 to help regularise unauthorised colonies but almost immediately work stopped due to Covid-19 pandemic.
‘40 lakh people benefited’
“Out of the 2-2.5 crore people, 40 lakh benefited by authorisation of unauthorised colonies but still some sections not covered in the initial list but more will be benefited.”
“Land pooling will benefit more than 70 lakh people. Delhi is not only a city growing in population but also in economic strength and a lot of rebuilding is taking place. This Bill seeks extension for three years which will give us time and cushion for carrying out wide-ranging consultation for orderly development of unauthorised colonies,” he added.
According to the statements and objectives of the Bill: “The Master Plan for Delhi with the perspective year 2041 is under finalisation wherein the measures for unauthorised developments like Jhuggi-Jhompri [slum] clusters, unauthorised colonies, etc., are being included”.
It said that the process of dealing with these unauthorised developments will take more time. “Therefore, there is a need for continuing the protection from punitive action granted to certain forms of unauthorised developments in the National Capital Territory of Delhi”.
The Bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha too by a voice vote.
Intervening in the debate, Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha Piyush Goyal said despite being present, the Congress and AAP members did not support the Bill. This shows their attitude towards Dalits, OBCs and homeless people of Delhi.
