Delhi Development Authority Explained

Delhi Development Authority
Logo Pic:Delhi Development Authority Logo.svg
Coa Res:GHJ
House Type:Public
Leader1 Type:Chairman
Leader1:Vinai Kumar Saxena
Leader2 Type:Vice Chairman
Leader3:Vikas Sadan, INA, New Delhi - 110023
Leader3 Type:Headquarters

The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) is a statutory body established under the Delhi Development Act, 1957, under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India to "promote and secure the development of Delhi".[1] [2] It is tasked with large-scale land acquisition for affordable housing in Delhi, as well as planning, development and construction of residential projects and commercial lands. Its responsibilities included providing public facilities like roads, bridges, drains, underground water reservoirs, community centres, sports centres, and green belts within the National Capital Territory of Delhi, India.

History

British Raj

In 1922, a tiny Nazul Office consisting of 10 to 12 officials was set up in the Collectorate of Delhi, which was the first authority to regulate the planned development of the city. In 1937, the office was upgraded to an Improvement Trust,[3] constituted under the provisions of the United Provinces Improvement Act, 1911, to control building operations and regulate land usage.

After Independence

India's independence in 1947 and resultant migration increased Delhi's population from 7 lakhs to 17 lakhs by 1951.[4] All the open spaces were occupied by migrants. Civic services virtually collapsed. The 2 local bodies at that time, the Delhi Improvement Trust and Municipal Body, were not adequately equipped to cope with the changing scenario.Thus, to plan Delhi and to check its rapid and haphazard growth, the Central Government appointed a Committee under the chairmanship of Sh. G D. Birla in 1950. This Committee recommended a Single Planning & Controlling Authority for all the urban areas of Delhi. Consequently, the Delhi Development (Provisional) Authority - DDPA - was constituted by promulgating the Delhi (Control of Building Operations) Ordinance, 1955 with the primary objective of ensuring the development of Delhi by a plan.The aforementioned ordinance was replaced by the Delhi Development Act, 1957 and on 30th December 1957, the Delhi Development Authority acquired its present name and role.

Master plans

The DDA master plan was formed in 1962 to ensure an organized and structured development of Delhi. This included the identification of new land that could be developed into residential properties and be made into self-contained colonies by providing ample commercial offices and retail complexes. The DDA master plan was revised in 1982 to formulate the Master Plan 2001 and then re-revised in 2007 to form the Delhi Master Plan 2021.[5] The DDA is currently preparing its 4th master plan for the year of 2041.[6] [7]

Housing

The development of housing projects by DDA commenced in 1967 with the construction of houses and providing basic amenities like electricity, water supply, sewage disposal along other infrastructure facilities. The new projects undertaken instigate recognition of project sites, a public announcement about the new DDA housing schemes in various categories through newspapers and other media advertisements, formal acceptance of the applications, a transparent draw system for short-listing of the applicants and finally allotment of the property.

Some popular DDA housing schemes of the past include the New Pattern Registration Scheme which offers home registration along with the property purchase, Janta Housing Registration Scheme which offers house registrations for the economically weaker section category and Ambedkar Awas Yojana allotted Janta, LIG & MIG (lower and middle-income group) category flats to the SC/ST registrants. The residential land is allotted to individual applicants, the farmers whose land is acquired for development and group housing societies through public auction.

1985 housing scheme

The 1985 housing scheme was a scheme for people with low annual incomes. The scheme stated that each person can participate by paying Rs 3000 draft on a DDA account. The total cost of each house was Rs 35000; recipients had to pay the balance of the amount within a few months. The scheme was subject to criticism due to delays and perceived unequal treatment of applicants. After years of dispute, a new policy was instituted in 2019 requiring submission of a Rs 50,000 draft to the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board or an appreciated reimbursement of 9000 Rs was offered.[8] [9]

DDA Housing Scheme 2019

In March 2019, DDA launched a new housing scheme, for around 18,000 flats situated in Vasant Kunj and Narela, which got a lukewarm response from the general public in terms of applications received.[10] Most of the flats of this scheme situated at Narela was the surrendered flats of the earlier DDA Housing Scheme 2017. The results of the DDA Housing Scheme 2019 were announced in July 2019.[11]

Land development

The Delhi Development Authority acquires land for development in Delhi. So far, over 64354.88acres of land has been acquired with successful development projects on 59504acres and 30713.95acres as residential land. Besides, the construction projects, DDA land development also includes providing a lush green belt and forest area for a clean and healthy environment by developing regional parks, neighbourhood parks, district parks, play fields, and sports complexes.

Commercial properties

DDA undertakes the construction, development and maintenance of commercial properties like retail shops in local markets, shopping complexes, office complexes, makeshift industrial setups, hospitals, community halls, clubs, educational institutions, religious segregation centres etc. These properties are disposed of through auctions or tenders.

Sports complexes

Delhi Development Authority (DDA) aims to provide an entire network of sports facilities through sports complexes, play fields, multi-facility gymnasiums and fitness centres, golf courses etc. DDA provides the basic infrastructure facilities, coaching through the top sportspersons in India, providing stipends and kits and other facilities to identify and train budding sports talent in Delhi.

Besides this DDA also conducts various talent hunt schemes through its Sports Complexes in Dwarka, Saket, Hari Nagar and other areas, including Yamuna Sports Complex and Siri Fort Sports Complex. DDA Dwarka Sports Complex along with DDA Saket Sports Complex plans to host State Level tournaments to provide a platform to professional and amateur sportspeople to showcase their talent.

A list of all the sports complexes in Delhi is as follows:[12]

List of sports complexes in Delhi
S. No. District Name
1East DelhiCWG Village Sports Complex
Chilla Sports Complex
Poorv Delhi Khel Parisar
2Golf CourseQutab Golf Course
Bhalswa Golf Course
3North DelhiMajor Dhyan Chand Sports Complex
Rashtriya Swabhiman Khel Parisar
Rohini Sports Complex
4South DelhiNetaji Subhash Sports Complex
Saket Sports Complex
Siri Fort Sports Complex
Squash & Badminton Stadium
Vasant Kunj Sports Complex
5West DelhiDwarka Sports Complex
Hari Nagar Sports Complex
Paschim Vihar Sports Complex

Notes and References

  1. Web site: DDA At A Glance . dda.gov.in. Delhi Development Authority.
  2. Web site: Plantation drives carried out in different parts of city. 15 July 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240715052751/https://www.dailypioneer.com/2024/state-editions/plantation-drives-carried-out-in-different-parts-of-city.html. dailypioneer.com. The Daily Pioneer. New Delhi. 14 July 2024. 15 July 2024.
  3. Web site: Delhi Improvement Trust (D.I.T) . rgplan.com . RG Plan . 2 May 2022.
  4. Web site: Six Delhi maps chart the city’s evolution from 1807 to 2021 . Chaudhari . Zinnia Ray . 23 June 2017 . scroll.in . ‘Maps Of Delhi’: Pilar Maria Guerrieri . 2 May 2022 . Post-independence: “Right after independence, there was an explosion of settlements in Delhi owing to the influx of refugees from all social strata into Delhi which gave birth to various inconsistently built colonies,” said Guerrieri. One of the maps created after independence includes many of these refugee colonies – Patel Nagar, Lajpat Nagar and Nizamuddin..
  5. Web site: About The Master Plan . dda.gov.in . Delhi Development Authority. 2 May 2022.
  6. Web site: Master Plan For Delhi - 2041 . dda.gov.in . Delhi Development Authority. 2 May 2022.
  7. News: 9 June 2021 . Master Plan of Delhi 2041: Strategic corridors, Ring Rail revamp, intelligent transport system . Mint . 2 May 2022.
  8. Web site: DUSIB breathes new life into 3-decade-old housing scheme. timesofindia.indiatimes.com.
  9. Web site: DUSIB consent letter revised . delhishelterboard.in.
  10. Web site: DDA Housing Scheme 2019: Results announced, check flat allotment list. 2019-07-23. livemint.com . en. 2019-07-25.
  11. Web site: Over 8,000 DDA Flats Allotted In Delhi's Narela, Vasant Kunj Residential Areas. ndtv.com. 2019-07-25.
  12. Web site: DDA Sports Complex . ddasports.com . Delhi Development Authority (DDA) . 11 April 2022.