The Indian Express            22.11.2013

MC passes resolution for shifting 13 villages

Amidst a ruckus at the meeting of the General House of the Municipal
Corporation, and a division on political lines, a resolution giving
consent to transfer of villages to the civic body was passed on
Thursday. Even as the BJP-SAD councillors tore copies of the resolution
that had been circulated and raised slogans, with the support of the
Congress and nominated councillors, the resolution was accorded approval
initiating the process of transfer.

The UT Administration had mooted the proposal for transfer of 13
villages managed by 12 panchayats to the Municipal Corporation. For
this, the consent of the civic body was sought. A resolution was
presented in the House on Thursday with 10 conditions that the
administration should agree to before transfer of the villages. The
resolution will be sent to the administration and the process of
transferring the villages will start. No time frame has, however, been
mentioned for the transfer.

Mayor Subhash Chawla said that there were 23,000 houses in the 13
villages constructed outside the lal dora where a population of 63,000
people was residing. “One of the conditions in the resolution is that
the abadi deh be transferred to the MC and Periphery Control Act not be
applied on existing construction. This would save the houses of the
substantial population that resides outside the lal dora. Once all
villages are under the MC, this will be possible,” he said.

However, the condition in the villages is such that the
construction outside the lal dora is much more than the construction
inside. Even in villages that are under the purview of the MC, around
15,000 houses are estimated to be constructed outside. As per the Census
report of 2011, only five villages are there that have a rural
character. The remaining have been classified as Census towns.

The resolution witnessed opposition from the BJP-SAD, BSP and an Independent councillor as well as one nominated councillor.

BSP councillor Jannat Jahan said that in the villages already
transferred to the MC, no development had taken place. These should be
developed as model villages and only then should the other villages be
transferred. The problem of lal dora had not been sorted out, she added.

SAD councillor Malkit Singh said the panchayats were important in
villages as people could get their work done easily. In the villages
that have been transferred to the Municipal Corporation, the residents
have to face the hassle of getting building plans passed for which they
make rounds of offices. He added that 350 to 400 building plans were
pending with the MC due to the absence of a patwari.

The Congress councillors, while extending support to the
resolution, stated that the funds that were being spent in the villages
under the MC were much more than those under the panchayats. The
councillors said that once the abadi deh was included in the MC, basic
amenities could be provided.

5 transferred in 1995, 5 in 2006

IN 1995, five villages were transferred to the civic body. These
were Manimajra, Burail, Badheri, Attawa and Buterla. Later, in 2006,
five more villages — Hallomajra, Dadumajra, Maloya, Kajheri and Palsora —
were included in the municipal limits.

The process for transfer of the last 13 villages has now been
initiated. These are Kishangarh, Mauli Jagran, Daria, Raipur Kalan &
Makhan Majra, Behlana, Raipur Khurd, Dhanas, Sarangpur, Khuda Alisher,
Kaimbwala, Khuda Lahora and Khuda Jassu.