Despite Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit’s instructions to all civic agencies to expedite work in Delhi’s 1,639 unauthorised colonies in the run up to general elections, 261 areas might not make it to the final list of colonies up for regularisation, Newsline has learnt.

Reason: These 261 colonies, mostly in South Delhi and East Delhi, are located on land belonging to agencies such as the Forest Department and Archeological Survey of India (ASI), or are along the Yamuna bed, Urban Development department officials said.

An official from the department took the example of Khirkee Extension and Tughlaqabad Extension: “A monument under ASI’s protection cannot have any kind of development within a radius of 100 meters. But people in these two colonies open their windows to a monument.”

The official said ASI has sent its objections on more than 50 such colonies.

Sangam Vihar, one of Delhi’s biggest unauthorised colonies with a population of over 4.5 lakh, might also fail to make it to the final list. Reason: parts of the colony fall in areas close to the Asola Bhatti forests. Other colonies nestled along this thin red line of development include Vishwakarma Colony near Deoli, Madhupur near Partparganj, and colonies in Okhla, Nandnagari and Shahdara. Then there are the colonies around Kanjhawala, Najafgarh and Mundka (in Outer Delhi) — they are all on farmland the government has acquired over the past few years which makes their case contentious, the official said.

“There is still dispute over compensation offered by the government, so we are looking at the legality of regularising them,” the official said.

“Many South Delhi colonies are in the same areas as Sainik Farms and Anantram Dairy, which were not included in the list of 1,639. So these, too, are in the trouble zone.”

These colonies have not been included in the exercise for drawing boundaries of unathorised colonies. “Of 1,400 colonies shortlisted for redefining boundaries, we have so far managed only about 275 colonies due to lack of cooperation from MCD and DDA,” the official said.