he Delhi government's decision to ban all demolitions will increase the number of slum clusters in the national capital. According to city-based town planners, property lawyers and activists, these slums, while providing shelter to migrant labourers, will largely help land sharks and the builder mafia, aid encroachment and thus will hamper the capital's redevelopment plans as per the Delhi Master Plan 2021. The ban will also ensure that very little is generated for the state treasury, apart from these slums eating into state resources, as the government plans to provide civic amenities like free water and cheap electricity in these areas.

As per an affidavit filed by the capital's civic bodies in the Supreme Court, around 49% of Delhi's 18 million population lives in slums, which include 860 jhuggi-jhonpri clusters. While most of such settlements thrive in trans-Yamuna areas like Bhalswa, Seemapuri, Welcome, Shahadra, Bhajanpura, Shastri Park etc., similar settlements are also found in south and west Delhi, in areas such as Israeli Camp, Rangpuri Pahari near Vasant Kunj and Kathputli Colony near Mayapuri.

Interestingly, the Delhi government does not have any proper record on the number of people living in Delhi's slums and is said to be in the process of preparing a data base of such areas.

"Our decision to ban demolition in residential areas is based on a holistic approach to help slum dwellers, who constitute the majority of the workforce needed to develop Delhi. More than a policy initiative, it's a move to provide relief to JJ residents as the government is busy reviewing the existing policies on demolitions in Delhi colonies," said a Delhi government official when asked about the reason behind the demolition ban.

He didn't say how the government would make up for the expenditure on water and electricity supply to these areas considering there is "almost no collection of taxes from there".

Bharatiya Janata Party MP from New Delhi, Meenakshi Lekhi said that through this ban, Delhi's Aam Aadmi Party government was only trying to thank their voters by showing concern for JJ residents.

"In their enthusiasm to take such a populist step, the AAP government has forgotten that development of Delhi and measures like demolition are largely subjects of the Central government and Delhi Development Authority (DDA). The state government and civic bodies like New Delhi Municipal Corporation and Municipal Corporation of Delhi have little to do with it," said Lekhi.

The Delhi government decided to ban demolitions after the displaced residents of Shahdara and Rangpuri slums protested against their evacuation in front of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence. "Since we all have voter ID cards and Aadhar cards, how can we be termed illegal dwellers? We have voted for the Aam Aadmi Party in this election," said Lola Devi, a resident of Rangpuri.

Those who have been displaced and those who are still residents in these localities told this correspondent that many of them have paid builders and the land mafia a regular sum to stay in these shanties.

Besides extortion of money from the slum dwellers, the land sharks and the builder mafia active in these slums indulge in illegal sale and purchase of land and property. "The sale and purchase of property and land worth crores of rupees take place every day in these areas. The ownership of property changes hands only through power of attorney agreements. This means, sometimes only notary stamps worth Rs 10-50 are required to buy a property in these unauthorised colonies. No revenue duty is paid and thus the state government does not earn any money. Plus, these properties are not also liable to house taxes. A ban on demolition will spur such activities, as demolitions or other preventive actions used to generate fear among the builders and discourage buyers," said N. Ramachandran, a lawyer in the Delhi High Court.

This correspondent posed as a prospective buyer of property in colonies like Seelampur, Bhajanpura and Seemapuri, and found many willing sellers, despite the fact that this correspondent did not show any official document of Delhi state.

When offices of the District Police Commissioner, North District, and vice chairman of DDA were asked about such illegal sale and purchase in slums, officials said that they would act only on complaints received. They did not say whether they had received any recent complaints. Apart from a spurt in the sale of such property, not making any attempts to remove the slums, according to town planners, will not let Delhi develop as a world class city.

"To make Delhi a world class city is one of the primary planks of the present AAP government. But their first major decision to ban the demolition of illegal structures in slums will not help this cause. In fact, it will mar all such planning. If this leads to more JJ clusters in the capital, it will create more roadblocks to town planning, as once established it will be difficult to remove these squatters. Right now, only 25% of Delhi is properly planned, the rest will be planned when unauthorised structures are either removed or authorised in a planned way. Plus, all illegal squatters will have to be pushed to the margins of Delhi so that the main city remains open for beautification," said Ajay Garkal, a town-planner and real estate expert.

This correspondent sent enquiries related to the slum clusters in Delhi, authorised properties in these areas and tax collection to the offices of AAP and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, but there was no reply from either side.

Meanwhile, a Delhi secretariat official told this correspondent that the main motive behind showing concern for the slum-dwellers was that many slum dwellers work as sanitation workers. "Delhi has a sanitation workforce to cater to only 1/3 of the capital. The rest come from slums, where rag pickers stay. Assuming a rag picker picks up 50 kg of waste every day, it reduces the load for treatment and disposal by 1,200-1,500 tonnes per day," he said.