Slum Rehabilitation Policy Amended

Slum-dwellers living on ‘encroached’ railway land in New Delhi might be rehabilitated into vertical housing, TOI reports. Still under consideration, the scheme proposes that 30% of the railway land that is occupied by the slum-dwellers will be used to build affordable housing, while the rest will be left with the railway authority. Once the scheme is finalized, the model will potentially be replicated throughout the country, where a total of 2000 hectares of railway land is occupied by slum-dwellers.

With mounting pressure from slum-dwellers in Delhi and the Delhi Shramik Sangathan, the previously stringent  norms that excluded lakhs of slum-dwellers from rehabilitation and protection against eviction, have been eased. Despite having lived in a particular slum for over twenty years, dwellers were deemed ineligible for rehabilitation on the basis of insufficient documentation – ration cards, election cards, income certificates, etc.

The rehabilitation scheme still has a cut-off date that renders only the dwellers who moved into the concerned slum on or before that date, eligible for rehabilitation. However, the date has been extended from March 31, 2007 to June 4, 2009. The only requirement from the slum-dwellers is that their names are on the electoral roll on or before June 4, 2009.

Further, Ramendra Kumar, secretary general of Delhi Shramik Sangathan says, “the slums which are situated near footpaths, safety zone of railway, right of way and community areas and were earlier not eligible for rehabilitation have been provided the benefit of rehabilitation’’. The income bracket criteria for rehabilitation has also been scrapped from the policy.

However, it is still unclear whether or not the rehabilitation will be in-situ, and what the price of the flat will be (the cost will be shared by the beneficiary and state government, after deducting the share of the central government).

Slum Demolition Continues Across India

Indian authorities across the country are destroying informal housing to make way for new development, causing significant suffering and highlighting the need for affordable housing.  The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) razed the homes of thousands of Ejipura slum residents in January to make way for a commercial complex.  In recent months, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) destoryed over 1,400 slum communities in Ganpat Patil Nagar.  These demolitions continue unimpeded as the BMC tore down 25 homes in Jai Ambe Nagar slum in February 2013.

This destruction of slum-dwellers’ homes has a high human cost.  A fact-finding report by Tata Institute of Social Science has found that the BMC’s unannounced demolition in Jai Ambe Nagar slum had drastic consequences for residents, including the death of a three-month old child.  Residents had their personal items confiscated and were left to sleep in the open air.  In Ejipura slum, an older woman evicted from her home also died and many residents lacked food, shelter and running water.  These tragic events could be avoided if the urban poor had access to affordable, formal housing.

The Indian government’s attempts to provide this affordable housing cannot deal with the massive scope of the problem.  Central government schemes like Rajiv Awas Yojana are not enough to close the housing gap, and state programs to build affordable housing in Rajasthan, Gujarat and other areas have moved too slowly.  India must also harness the power of social enterprise, public-private partnerships and non-governmental organizations to provide adequate housing for the urban poor and decrease the number of slum demolitions.