Jethmalani told Express Newsline that he was shocked to see for himself the pathetic conditions prevailing there. ``This (Dwarka) is probably one of the biggest scandals of the DDA and other civic agencies where hundreds of flats have been constructed but are unfit for habitation for the last several years,'' he said.

The minister, who went to inspect the housing sites at Dwarka on Tuesday, found that over 10,000 flats were lying fully constructed for several years but had not been allotted due to non-availability of water and power connections. In fact, several flats were even allotted by the DDA to various people many years ago but were still to be occupied because of the non-availability of power and water.

The minister said that he was disappointed with the shoddy manner in which the DDA had constructed these flats. ``It is ironical that many of these flats have already fallen into a state of disrepair even before they have been allotted or occupied. There is no proper sanitation or sewerage system and the roads are non-existent in most sectors,'' he observed.

Jethmalani was accompanied to Dwarka by top officials of various civic agencies such as the DDA, MCD, DVB and the water department. Sources said that when the minister wanted to know the agency responsible for the unprecedented delay, the officials kept passing the buck to each other.

An angry minister then ordered his officials to ensure that power and water supply be provided to the flats by the end of this month so that they could be fit for occupation. He also warned the officials that he would be forced to take action against them if his orders were not complied with or unnecessary delayed.

The issue of lack of proper civic amenities at Dwarka (said to be one of Asia's largest housing colonies) has been the subject of many meetings in the Urban Development Ministry and the DDA in the last few years. Several schemes have also been drawn up by the DDA in the past in consultation with the DVB, MCD and the water department but precious little has been done at the ground level. The various civic agencies have blamed each other for the fiasco.

One of the schemes under consideration pertained to providing power to the dozens of housing societies there. It was suggested that each housing society be provided with independent sub-stations which would provide power to the consumers. The responsibility of collecting tariff would rest on the society members.

Although DDA officials term Jethmalani's directions as unrealistic, it remains to be seen whether the minister's visit can galvanise the civic agencies into doing something for the hundreds of hapless flat-owners who have been waiting to move into their flats for years.