CHANDIGARH: The Chief Minister of Haryana, Manohar Lal Khattar, has announced to regularise 264 unauthorised colonies spread across 17 districts in the state. Out of the 264 colonies, 91 fall under the Department of Town and Country Planning, while the 173 colonies are under the jurisdiction of the Department of Urban Local Bodies.
While announcing to regularise the colonies, CM Khattar informed that, so far, the state government has regularised 2,101 unauthorised colonies and hailed it as a step towards comprehensive urban development and community welfare.
Of the 91 colonies under the jurisdiction of the Department of Town and Country Planning, 44 are in Palwal, 21 in Panchkula, 14 in Panipat, and 12 in Mahendragarh. Similarly, of the 173 colonies which are under the Department of Urban Local Bodies, 44 colonies are in Gurugram, 41 are in Sonipat, 11 each are in Panipat, Kurukshetra and Rohtak, nine each in Palwal and Karnal, seven in Ambala, six in Bhiwani, five each in Sirsa and Faridabad, four in Hisar, and three in Panchkula and Jind.
With the regularisation, basic amenities like roads, sewerage water supply, and street lights will be extended to these colonies. To ensure the development of these colonies, the government has granted administrative approval of ₹438 crore. Initially, ₹54 crore has been disbursed to start the developmental activities in these colonies.
Khattar also launched a portal to implement the Haryana urban built plan reform policy for those seeking houses under ‘Mukhyamantri Shehri Awas Yojana’. Under this programme, plots will also be allocated at concessional rates to all eligible beneficiaries. In the initial phase, 10,542 plots will be allocated to eligible beneficiaries across 14 cities.
The initiative aims to provide homes to urban families whose household income is less than ₹1.80 lakh. Nearly 2.90 lakh families have applied seeking the benefits of this scheme, of which 1.51 lakh have applied for plots and 1.38 lakh for flats.
Apart from that, the ‘Haryana Trust-Based Reading Mobile App’ has also been launched on the same day for the convenience of the electricity consumers in the state. Although the mobile has only been launched on a pilot basis in selected districts, including Mahendragarh, Karnal, Panchkula, and Hisar, it is expected to benefit nearly 10,70,000 consumers. This app also facilitates the payment of electricity bills. It allows the consumer to choose either a monthly or bi-monthly billing cycle.