NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 7 Every illegal construction in Delhi’s residential areas that came up before January 1, 2006 will be regularised. For, demolition on “such a large scale” may lead to “law and order problem” and the “displacement of millions of people requiring rehabilitation which the Government can hardly afford.” This is how the draft ordinance sent by the Sheila Dikshit Government to the Centre last week tries to go around the High Court’s severe indictment of illegal constructions in the city.

The draft Delhi Residential Areas (Regulation of Development) Ordinance, 2006, a copy of which is with The Indian Express is under the Centre’s “consideration.” Union Urban Development Minister S Jaipal Reddy has said that bringing in an ordinance would not be possible “at the moment” as Parliament session has already been called.

At a meeting with Reddy and Dikshit today, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called for a “high-powered” panel to come up with “practical solutions and end the uncertainty.”

The nine-page ordinance tries to do that by stating that buildings (in residential areas) of those who have “been issued notices, and orders to remove, pull down or alter” will be regularised. Residential area is defined as “area earmarked for residential use zone in the Master Plan of Delhi and includes the abadi area of the rural and urbanised village.”

In effect, if approved by the Centre, it would mean that residential area buildings facing demolition will not be touched—even in cases of illegal land-use conversion, from flats to shops.

Calling for an infrastructure development fund, the draft Ordinance seeks action in the case of “unauthorised development” in four categories:

• On public land

• On land falling in notified or reserved forest areas

• Construction beyond plot boundary

• Change in use that may cause “danger to health or lead to hazard”