Dated: 24.7.1997
Shri Tejinder Khanna
Hon'ble Lt. Gov.(Delhi),
Raj Niwas, Rajpur Road, Delhi.
Dear Hon'ble Lt. Gov. Sir,
I had met you with Mr. S.K. Sharma, on 8th July in connection with 'People First' and discussed various proposals for making of "A More Liveable Delhi" . You had asked me to detail out these proposals that we had discussed . I have enclosed a Concept Paper for your perusal. It is presented in two parts:
- The empowerment of Delhi's Residents by recognising Residents Associations.
- Re-examination of present planning systems and controls and suggested damage control which would help contain lawlessness, encroachment and disease.
I would be very happy to make a formal presentation and discuss the same. I look forward to your views on the Paper.
Yours sincerely,
ANIL LAUL
CONCEPT PAPER:
"TOWARDS A MORE LIVEABLE DELHI"
PART ONE: EMPOWERMENT OF NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS
1. INTRODUCTION
The city of Delhi is laboring under a plethora of seemingly insurmountable problems. While the citizens of Delhi complain about the non-delivery of basic services like water and power, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi fights a losing battle against encroachments and power thefts, compounded by the non-payment of dues by the people. The public, in turn, accuses the government of corruption, lack of accountability, inefficiency and the frittering away of public money. How then, can we find a way out of this convoluted scenario? Since the last 30 years have been witness to the failure of a centralised supply, maintenance and monitoring body, let us look to our constitutional framework for an answer. Perhaps, " a government of the people, by the people and for the people" can inspire us to endeavor a system of maintenance and regulation by the citizens of Delhi. The government often complains that people are not responsible. A beginning can be made by recognising the many existing Residents Associations thereby involving the people as an extension of the Municipal Corporation.
Recognition of Residents Associations (RA) Every colony in Delhi has an Elected Residents Association. In fact, some group housing colonies even have floor-wise Residents Associations. This proposal suggests that the government recognise these Residents Associations and empower them to fulfill various sub-municipal functions with respect to public services, thereby improving their management, policing and efficiency.
2. RESIDENTS ASSOCIATIONS - POWERS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Collection of Property Tax Property tax rules must be explained and conveyed to the RA in a simplified manner, on the basis of which the association will collect Property Tax.
Advantages of system
It is accepted that, at present, the government collection of Property Tax amounts to 10-15% of the actual amount to be collected. By giving 50% of collection by the RA to the Municipal Corporation, government revenue will increase threefold ( to about 40-45% ), while revenue and manpower involved in maintenance will decrease owing to the responsibility being limited to trunk services only.
Maintenance / Responsibility for Public Amenities within the colony by RA
- For Electricity Supply within a colony, block meters should be set up for the entire area under the Residents Association, in addition to the individual meters. Thus, in case of a mismatch between the overall readings and the sum of the individual meters, the Residents Association will investigate and ensure full payment by the residents.
- Streetlights within the colony should be maintained and monitored by members of the Residents Association.
- With regard to the 450 parks maintained by DDA, the Hon'ble Lt. Gov. had proposed that the gardeners employed in local park maintenance, give attendance directly to the Residents Association (RA). We further propose that the salary for these employees be handed over to the RA, to ensure their accountability to the RA. The money budgeted for horticulture should also be given to the RA, along with the right to let out these parks for weddings and functions within the community. The revenue thus generated, in addition to the horticulture budget, would be ample for excellent maintenance of these now barren, unused and often encroached public spaces . One must also note that under law, these parks are the property of the residents, as the development cost for the park area as well as its land cost was included in the cost of plot, charged to the Residents, when the colony was being developed.
Sanctioning of Plans
In the present scenario, all plans are sanctioned by the Zonal Engineer and the Building Plans Committee behind the closed doors of the Zonal Office. For any development within an area, plans should be sanctioned by the Zonal Engineer and the Building Plans Committee in the presence of the RA in the colony itself. The Municipal Councillor and the local MLA may also be present should they deem it fit. For each colony under a Zonal Engineer, one day in a month should be fixed for the sanctioning of plans. The Residents Association should be informed in advance of the set date. The presence of the Residents Association during sanctioning of any development work will infuse much needed transparency and accountability of the government officials into the present system.
Monitoring Committee
The Hon'ble. Lt. Gov. of Delhi had nominated wardens: senior citizens from the various Zones in Delhi to oversee Municipal Corporation work. We suggest that monitoring committees be composed of wardens elected from the groups of Residents Associations affected by the development of trunk services (Roads / streetlights / parks). The composition of wardens in the Monitoring Committee will vary depending on the work in question. Thus, in case of a proposed school, wardens will be appointed from the RA's of the colonies adjoining the site of the school and the colonies which the school is meant to serve. Similarly, for roads / sewage lines being laid or repaired, the Monitoring Committee will be composed of wardens from RA's affected by that work. In addition, the value and specifications of all contracts should be known to the wardens to enable proper policing by the Monitoring Committee.
Pressure to Perform
The members of the Residents Association are democratically elected every year. Thus, unlike the elected representatives ( MLA/ Corporators ) who have five years in which to prove themselves, the members of such committees will have five times the pressure on them to perform effectively. In addition, if at any time a member of either association is found guilty of non - performance by the residents, he/she can be removed from their post.
CONCLUSIONS
The measures suggested above will vastly increase transparency and accountability within the government machinery and empower the Residents of Delhi to be responsible for their immediate environment. Additionally, these measures will eliminate the role of a Public Grievance Cell since all grievances will now have to be directed to representatives elected by the very same public. In the new scenario, only the main issues will come to the attention of the Municipal Corporation; its role being a decision making and monitoring agency truly representing peoples interests rather than reducing itself to a petty maintenance agency.
"Any function is best performed at the lowest level that it can be best performed."
PART TWO: RE-EXAMINING PLANNING STRATEGIES INTRODUCTION
It is often discussed that lawlessness, disease and encroachment are strangulating the city of Delhi We must recognise that the present breakdown in civic sense and law and order is a result of improper planning principles. If planning is done on an impersonal basis, you remove feelings of community and social cohesion. The crime problems and the lack of communication between residents in high-rise buildings are a case in point. As a test case, we suggest a small experiment of removing all the boundary walls within a colony to the above mentioned problems besetting Delhi. The colonies in question could be any unauthorised colonies marked for regularisation as well as any typical government housing colony . This small experiment of removing boundary walls will prove the point that sensitive planning can change the human response and attitudes. Thus, while one cannot reverse planning systems, we must endeavor damage control by way of the small interventions mentioned above as a trial. These interventions, if successfully implemented by the government as a pilot scheme, would ensure quick recognition and set the ball rolling for similar implementation in other areas. Such planning intervention would become a pacesetter for further development and shape future planning strategies.
Removal of Boundary Walls
- To solve the problems of unhygienic conditions and encroachment, it is further proposed that within a colony, boundary walls/hedges and back lanes be removed
- This step would stem encroachment as only the built-up area would be the property of the owner. In addition there would be a better law and order situation, as increased visibility would check the robberies and murders which make headlines everyday.
- This removal of boundary walls is much like dropping a multi-storey building horizontally; with pockets of individually owned blocks on land that is common property.
3. CONCLUSIONS
Mindless demarcation of plots in a ratio of 1:2.5 is the system of planning adopted today. Planning in the manner envisaged would require more application of the mind for the planners and one could ask a planner to plan a colony instead of the loose term ' cut out a colony '. Whenever the issue of planning for Delhi is raised, a certain lobby contends that all of Delhi is developed and therefore planning is a futile exercise. However, projections for Delhi's growth indicate a projected increase in population of 40 Lakhs. Housing this populace is therefore an eventuality and if we are to stem the ever worsening problems of Delhi, we have to stop, re-examine and address the issue of an Appropriate Planning Strategy and force a situation where planning becomes a way of life.
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