Paying regularisation fee still residents wait for amenities

Though the government has given three more months for getting the plots and buildings regularised, residents of various unapproved colonies who have paid regularisation fee last year are still waiting to avail basic amenities such as water supply, sewerage system, roads, streetlights and sanitation.

There are around 2,500 unapproved colonies while majority of them are outside the municipal corporation's limit.Residents of these unapproved colonies accuse the colonisers who had assured development, but their dreams were still distant. Now, these residents are pining hopes as the government recently gave three more months to those who had not applied for regularisation as the authorities claimed starting development only when majority of property owners pay the regularisation charges.

Aman Duggal, a resident of Guru Angad Dev Nagar, had paid regularisation fee of their plot to the Greater Ludhiana Area Development Authority (GLADA) last year, but was still waiting to get the facilities. “There is no water supply, sewerage, streetlights and roads in their area as the colony has not got approval. We were told that the development will take place within a year, but nothing has been done. We were also given assurances of development during the last Lok Sabha elections.”

“The colony falls under Phullanwal panchayat. I had also paid Rs 1,000 to the panchayat members so that sewerage system could be installed, but in vain. Snakes and other insects are common here. I had purchased our house around three years ago, but we were not informed that there is no sewerage system in the area,” said Surjeet Singh of Guru Angad Dev Nagar.

According to a GLADA official, work can take place only when 70% property owners and colonisers pay regularisation fees.

He said there were around 1,700 unapproved colonies as per the first list of a survey, but only around 30% people have submitted regularisation fee which would be used for development works in the colonies concerned.

However, sources said a few colonies have paid the required fees but the authorities concerned have failed to start providing basic amenities to them. The sources also claimed that many people had no information about the approval of these colonies when they had purchased a house or plot.
Besides, there are 328 unapproved colonies under the jurisdiction of the Ludhiana municipal corporation, while the residents of 108 colonies have already submitted regularisation fee but are waiting for development endlessly.

However, both GLADA and MC have been assuring the residents that basic facilities would be provided only after the colonisers and residents pay the regularisation fees as per norms.

As per recent directions of the state government, the colonisers and plot owners in unauthorised colonies could get their properties regularised by January 27.

GLADA's additional chief administrator Kuldeep Singh Vaid said, “I can comment only after checking the files that how many people and colonisers have submitted regularisation fee.”

MC's zonal commissioner Kamlesh Bansal said, “Everybody has to follow the norms for regularisation of plots and buildings. We are creating awareness about the norms.”