DDA to hold two-day public hearing on draft Delhi Master Plan 2041

The draft MPD-2041, which is the vision document for the city’s development for the next two decades, was put in the public domain in June this year.

The Delhi Development Authority’s (DDA) plan to hold a public hearing on the draft Master Plan of Delhi-2041 -- expected to be attended by 17,162 people -- over two days next week has come under criticism from civil society members who claim that the hearings are hurried and demanded more time for the discussions. The public hearing, which will be held online due to Covid-19 pandemic, will be held on October 18 and 20.

The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) will hold a public hearing on October 18 and 20 over the provisions of the draft Delhi Master Plan 2041. (Arvind Yadav/HT PHOTO)

Rajiv Kakria, convener of Save Our City campaign, a collective of RWAs, activists and others, said, “We all have spent so much time carefully going through the MPD-2041 provisions and drafting our suggestions/objections. If 7,000-8,000 people are put in one slot, how much time will one get?”

The draft MPD-2041, which is the vision document for the city’s development for the next two decades, was put in the public domain in June this year.

The land-owning agency received over 33,000 comments on the MPD-2021 but only 17,162 people have been given slots in the two-day public hearing.

“The schedule represents only 17,000 names instead of 33,000 citizens who filed suggestions and objections... going by the schedule, each person will not even get 30 seconds to voice their feedback,” read a statement by Mein Bhi Dilli Campaign, a collective of over 40 civil society groups.

When contacted, a senior DDA official said, “All those who have registered queries and suggestions will be heard. If more time is required, DDA is open to that.”