News: Soon, One-Way Relief For Commuters On Dwarka Expressway-08.01.2017

Soon, one-way relief for commuters on Dwarka Expressway

Delhi/NCR

Huda has decided to fast-track work on the Northern Peripheral Road (NPR), also known as Dwarka Expressway, which has been caught in legal tangles over rehabilitation of displaced people for past several months.

If sources are to be believed, the urban development authority is planning to make at least one lane of the thoroughfare ready for traffic at the earliest.

In October last year, while hearing a petition filed by one of the oustees, the Punjab and Haryana high court had put a stay on distribution of alternative plots among those of the displaced who did not have proper property documents, forcing authorities to stop construction work.

"The stay is only on issuing of allotment letters for alternative plots to oustees whose claim to ownership depended on general power of attorney (GPA) and special power of attorney (SPA). There is no stay on allotment of plots to people who do not come under GPA and SPA categories," said Huda administrator Yashpal Yadav. Yadav added the delay in rehabilitation of the displaced was the main obstruction before the expressway project.

Finally, after a meeting at the Huda head office last week, Huda officials decided to start work on stretches that were not caught up in the legal tangle.

Yadav said rehabilitating the non-GPA and non-SPA oustees alone would remove a large number of structures, and clear the way for the proposed expressway. “It will help start construction on some portions of the road,” Yadav added.

In the meantime, Huda is also going to file a petition for an early hearing, seeking relief from the high court.

Once the high court vacates the stay, Huda will build the remaining part of the expressway. "Rehabilitation of oustees from Kherki Daula will help connect NPR with NH-8. Work on construction of a railway over bridge at Basai is at an advanced stage," he added.

In September last year, Satyendra Singh, one of those displaced, had filed a petition in court, alleging that genuine land losers had been denied alternative plots. He also alleged that Huda made some dubious allotments to GPA and SPA holders.

Taking cognisance of the allegations, the high court stayed the allotment of plots and directed Huda to produce all original documents — GPAs/SPAs/sale deeds — on the basis of which plots had been allotted.

Huda responded by claiming that alternative plots were allotted to the displaced in accordance with the final terms of settlement prepared under the high court’s supervision.

According to Huda officials, 269 alternative plots had been allotted to oustees, including around 60 GPA and SPA holders, through lucky draws in July and August of 2016. Most of these dislodged people, who were chosen from a pool of 465 applicants, were from New Palam Vihar, Kherki Daula and Chauma village.

However, during a hearing last month, Huda failed to get any relief from the court, which listed the matter for a March 2017 hearing.