Give us 10% developed plots, we will clear land pooling plan: Kejriwal

NEW DELHI: Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said that his government will notify all villages earmarked under the land pooling policy as ‘development’ areas

NEW DELHI: Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said that his government will notify all villages earmarked under the land pooling policy as ‘development’ areas if the Centre allots 10% of the developed land to the state government.

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Kejriwal said the state government requires land for infrastructure projects — construction of schools, hospitals and bus depots — which the DDA has ‘failed’ to provide despite the government willing to pay its cost.

The land pooling policy is tipped as the future of planned and affordable housing in the Capital. The policy was notified by the DDA in September, 2013. Under the scheme, land owners can pool their land and hand it over to the DDA which will develop it before returning a portion to the owner. The land owners can then rope in real estate developers to come up with residential properties.

But for the work to start, the Delhi government’s urban development department is required to notify these urbanised villages, identified by the DDA, as ‘development’ areas. Most of these 95 villages fall in outer Delhi of southwest, west, northwest and north districts of the city.

“Wrong information is being spread that land pooling policy is stuck due to Delhi government. Months ago, we sent a proposal to the Centre demanding that of the 45% developed land that would go to DDA under the policy, 10% should be given to the Delhi government…The day government accepts our demand, we will clear the file within 24 hours,” Kejriwal said while addressing gathering on Friday.