Kejriwal gives ownership certificates to slum families

Ahead of Assembly elections in Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday handed over ownership certificates to over 65,000 families residing in slum clusters, who will now get permanent houses.

Launching the 'Mukhyamantri Aawas Yojana', Kejriwal handed over certificates to slum dwellers in Ambedkar Nagar here, for the allotment of pucca houses and to ensure that their jhuggis will not be demolished by any authority now.

The families were covered in the survey conducted by the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) under the Delhi government's ambitious housing scheme.

"The slum dwellers who have been covered under the Delhi government's survey are getting pucca houses. The survey is underway in the entire city and certificates will be given to all slum dwellers as soon as the survey is completed. The certificate ensures no encroachment or demolishing of slum areas," said Kejriwal.

He said the slum dwellers are constantly scared of encroachment and demolishing of their spaces by authorities, such as DDA.

According to the 2019-20 survey, the certificate bears the jhuggi number, name of the head of the family along with a family photograph, code number, survey code number and the Voter identity card number of the beneficiary family.

The government in 2018 had approved that DUSIB will conduct a demand survey of all JJ bastis in Delhi after Kejriwal decided the same in 2017.

The Delhi Cabinet in January renamed the Delhi Slum and JJ Rehabilitation and Relocation Policy, 2015 as 'Mukhya Mantri Awas Yojna'.

The DUSIB survey was started in June and the demand survey of 69,684 jhuggis.

Survey certificates of 67,459 JJ dwellers having photographs of the occupants of the surveyed units of 156 JJ bastis have been printed and are now being distributed, the government said.IANS