The Sarvajan Hitay Garib Avas Malikana Haq Yojna, announced on Thursday, promises land ownership right to slum dwellers across the state. But urban slums stand mostly on land under the jurisdiction of local corporations. And these corporations are now up in arms, maintaining that the government has no right to give away land that does not belong to it.

The local bodies have warned the government that the policy will only promote land mafia, encouraging them to take over vacant land of local bodies.

“The state government has no business to interfere in the affairs of the elected municipal corporation,” said Lucknow Mayor Dinesh Sharma. “The corporation is the rightful owner of the land. How can the government give ownership right to slum dwellers without obtaining the consent of the elected board of the corporation?”

As per the provisions of the UP Municipalities Act, 1959, only the executive body of the elected corporation and other urban local bodies have the right to decide on the allotment or lease, Sharma said.

“The scheme seems to have been devised in a tearing hurry by bureaucrats loyal to the chief minister to please their political boss,” he said. “They overlooked the fact that this scheme would only encourage the land mafia in towns and cities.”

Kanpur Mayor Ravindra Patni found it strange that the government took a decision without consulting the local bodies.

“This issue is under the jurisdiction of the corporation. When it comes before us, we will decide as per the provisions of the law,” he said.

Patni said the BSP government had destroyed the concept of local self-government and “we are being overruled by this government in almost all matters”.

Former urban development and housing minister Lalji Tandon said: “Mayawati’s announcement is only for public consumption, with an eye on the coming Lok Sabha polls and it is a fraud on the people”. There was no plan to provide basic facilities to slum-dwellers. “If Mayawati is sincere about the poor, she should revive the Ashrayaheen Yojna implemented during our tenure, under which pucca houses were given to the poor on easy instalments of Rs 5, 10 and Rs 15 per day,” he said.

That was a “planned scheme”, under which slum dwellers were provided facilities like roads, water and sanitation. The District Urban Development Agency was the implementing agency and over 5,000 houses were given to the poor in Lucknow alone, he said. The scheme was disbanded by former chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav during his tenure in 2003. Officials of the State Urban Development Agency, the body that will implement the scheme, however, claim it would go a long way to provide shelter to the poor. It will eliminate their constant fear of being evicted by the urban local bodies during anti-encroachment drives.

Sarvajan Hitay Garib Avas Malikana Haq Yojna
Land will be allotted to slum dwellers on 90 years’ lease on nominal charges. The beneficiaries will get plots — between 15 and 30 sq metres in size — at the rate of Rs 20 per sq metre. The district magistrates have been authorised to give 10 per cent relaxation in the maximum and minimum size. The cut-off date for the beneficiaries is January 15, 2009.