New Delhi: Under heavy police presence to prevent unrest, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) initiated a demolition drive early Wednesday morning in the Bhoomiheen camp, a slum settlement in Govindpuri, Southeast Delhi.
The DDA, the primary land-owning agency in Delhi, reports that 344 structures, most of which they claim were unoccupied, were dismantled. “Around 344 jhuggi (makeshift hut) structures existed, largely vacant. No legal injunction prevented the demolition of these structures,” the DDA stated.
The DDA maintains that residents were notified by June 10th to relocate, after their petitions against the demolition were rejected in court. The land cleared is part of a larger initiative to build in-situ slum rehabilitation housing.
According to the DDA, the project aims to accommodate approximately 4,500 residents from the nearby Navjeevan Camp and Jawahar Camp slums.
“Progress has been stalled for 2.5 years due to encroachment, despite offering alternative housing to eligible residents in Kalkaji Extension,” the DDA explained.
The demolition targeted what the DDA deems “ineligible dwellers” occupying five acres of its land. Eligibility for resettlement is determined by the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board’s (DUSIB) rehabilitation policy.
To qualify for alternative accommodation, a household member’s name must appear on voter lists from 2012-2015 and possess at least one of twelve specified documents, such as an electricity bill or driver’s license.
The DDA reports that “1,862 eligible households from the Bhoomiheen Camp were relocated to economically weaker section (EWS) flats in Pocket A-14, Kalkaji Extension, between November 2022 and May 2023.”
The DDA asserts that residents had opportunities to appeal the demolition and that the High Court ultimately dismissed all related petitions last week.
Reasons for ineligibility include using the jhuggi for commercial purposes, lacking voter registration during the specified years, absence of separate ration cards for upper-floor residents, and failure to provide adequate proof of residency.
