The Union Government is expected to issue a notification
on regularisation of about 900 colonies in Delhi on Tuesday. Apart from
this it is also likely to announce grant of ownership rights to 45
resettlement colonies.

Following a meeting between
Union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath and Chief Minister Sheila
Dikshit, her Parliamentary Secretary Mukesh Sharma said the issue of
regularisation of colonies was discussed at length.

He
said the meeting began at 7 p.m. and ran up to 8-10 p.m. It was also
attended by “outgoing” Delhi Minister for Urban Development and Revenue
A. K. Walia and his “successor” Arvinder Singh Lovely, Chief Secretary
P. K. Tripathi, Union Urban Development Secretary Sudhir Krishna and
some other senior officials of the Delhi and Central Government.

As
per Mr. Sharma, the Union Urban Development Minister assured the Delhi
Government delegation that he would be issuing the notification of the
regularisation of about 900 colonies on Tuesday.

“Ms.
Dikshit also raised the issue of unauthorised colonies that have come
up on Forest and Archaeological Survey of India land and stated that the
Delhi Government cannot remove so many people from there. At this Mr.
Nath assured that the Government of India would change the laws if need
be to protect the interests of these residents as well,” he said.

On
whether the issue of the matter of regularisation being pending in
courts came up for discussion, the Parliamentary Secretary said “there
are no technical or legal problems” coming in the way of regularisation
now. He also charged that the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party has been
misleading the people about the entire issue.

The
Delhi Government is soon expected to place all records and data on the
development works carried out in the unauthorised colonies before the
courts to pave the way for their regularisation.

Mr.
Sharma said another important decision taken at the meeting pertained to
grant of ownership rights to the residents of 45 resettlement colonies
in Delhi. “Mr. Nath has assured that these rights would also be granted
soon.”

Further, the Delhi Government functionaries
also raised the issue of launch and expansion of the Mono Rail system in
the city. “Mr. Nath stated that the Centre would extend all assistance
to the project. He said it would support not only the first proposed
line from Trilokpuri to Shastri Park in East Delhi but also the proposed
extension and eight to 10 other lines which the Delhi Government is
thinking about.”