Hopefuls head to Noida

Diwan Chand (52) from Traveri village near Karnal (Haryana) left his home at 4 am on Monday.

Diwan Chand (52) from Traveri village near Karnal (Haryana) left his home at 4 am on Monday.

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He ended up spending five hours under the scorching sun without any clue about what was happening inside the tall building where the draw of lots for Delhi Development Authority's (DDA) housing scheme was being held.

"I want to shift with my family to Delhi and the affordable DDA flats are the only way I can own a house here," said the small time businessman.

"I reached Noida with great difficulty but don't know how the draw is happening."

The authority held the draw at Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) in Noida. With limited space available inside, only a few mediapersons were allowed to witness the draw.

"DDA had said TV screens will be put outside to witness the draw live but they didn't do that," said Bharat Bhushan Bansal, a Paschim Vihar resident. "DDA has now proved that it doesn't believe in transparency," he added.

Ashwini Kumar from Mayur Vihar said DDA could have as well held the draw secretly as no one was allowed to witness the exercise.

A paper pasted outside the C-DAC office said applicants should contact DDA for queries even as there was confusion about when the list would be made public.

"Why can't they deploy some DDA officials outside the gate to answer our questions?" Kumar said. DDA said applicants shouldn't fear any foul play as enough check and balances have been put in place.