Delhi govt distributes low cost flats ahead of civic polls

New Delhi: With an eye on MCD polls slated for March, Delhi Government today finally started allotment of around 2,200 low cost flats to industrial workers in the city. In the first batch, a total of 115 industrial workers were given allotment letters of flats built at Narela area of North West Delhi, at a function attended by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit. [caption id=“attachment_209826” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Reuters”]  [/caption] Each beneficiary will have to pay around Rs 1.6 lakh to the government as cost of flat having 16.1 metre of carpet area. The government has made arrangements with a number of banks to provide loan to facilitate loans to the beneficiaries. Government’s infrastructure development agency DSIIDC, which built the 2,229 flats on ’no loss no profit’ basis, selected the beneficiaries by holding a draw of lots. A total of 11,000 applicants had applied for the flats. The flats have been built under Rajiv Gandhi Housing scheme for industrial workers. The remaining 2,114 flats will be alloted within next six months. Officials said Government would make available hospitals, schools, shopping complexes and bus services to the occupants of the flats in Narela so that the industrial workers and their families do not face any inconvenience. Dikshit, who personally distributed allotment letter to 22 beneficiaries, described allotment of the flats as beginning of a major task ahead. “It was our dream to give you a roof and today we have made a significant step forward in realising the dream. This is just the beginning. There is a major challenge ahead of us and we will do our best to take on the challenge,” she said. PTI