Houses in DDA colony crumbling, Nov 30 is last date to vacate

The DDA has set the deadline till October 15 for all the owners to sign the agreement, and till November 30 for the residents to evacuate.

According to the apartment’s RWA president Amarendra Jha, residents noticed structural issues in their flats almost immediately upon moving into them. “The first allottee who moved in in 2012, entered his new home only to see the roof caved in,” said Jha. Residents raised the issue with the DDA and even as the land authority carried out repairs, it also continued to sell the flats on the side.

In June 2022, the DDA got in touch with IIT-Delhi and Shriram Laboratories to carry out tests on the structural integrity of the apartment buildings. After 184 samples were collected and tested, IIT Delhi submitted its report to the DDA in November, declaring the buildings unfit for habitation. In January this year, the Lieutenant Governor ordered the DDA to rehabilitate the residents and reconstruct the buildings.

Negotiating options

The RWA negotiated for an “As Is, Where Is” clause where the residents who opted to evacuate the buildings till they were rebuilt would be handed newly constructed flats exactly how they were when they first possessed them. Till then, the DDA would pay them rent to cover the rental costs until they repossess the flats.

According to a resident of the complex, the DDA has agreed to pay the HIG flat owners Rs 50,000 a month and MIG flat owners, Rs 38,000 per month to cover rent.

However, according to Dharmendra, the treasurer, the tripartite agreement for reconstruction (between the DDA, the RWA and the flat owners) contains a clause that says that the DDA will only start paying rent to the residents once all 336 owners sign the agreement. “We are trying to negotiate with the DDA to reduce the number to 70 per cent of the owners,” said Dharmendra.

The tripartite agreement also violates the “as is, where is” clause, said Jha. The DDA plans to construct 144 additional HIG flats on an empty plot next to the buildings, which would alter the placements of blocks A, B, K and L. “Many residents of these blocks who have paid a premium to own corner-facing flats for better ventilation and sunshine would now face another building,” said Dharmendra.

Besides, the rent amount offered by DDA is no match to the going rate for flats in the area, residents said. Some residents have already shifted to nearby Parsvnath Tropicana Apartments and M2K Apartments where rent is between Rs 1.2 and 1.8 Lakh. Most residents, according to Dharmendra, are still paying the EMIs for their houses.

The other option — for the DDA to buy back their flats — is also not a palatable one, said Dharmendra. The DDA has negotiated to pay a 10.6 per cent flat interest upon the price paid originally. “It doesn’t make sense. People who bought the HIG flats in 2010 for around Rs 90 lakh and those who bought the MIG flats in 2017 for around Rs 1 crore will be paid almost the same amount,” said Dharmendra.

According to Pradeep Bareja, who bought an HIG flat in 2012, the current market price for an HIG flat is between Rs 2.5 and 3 crore. “The RWA seeks intervention from the L-G regarding the final settlement,” he said. “People are ready to move out but we need clarity and reassurance from the L-G office,” Bareja said.

With the RWA set to go for election in the next 15 days, the opposing party is promising to take the DDA to court.

However, going to court is not an option, said Dharmendra. A general body meeting was conducted where the residents unanimously agreed to not move court. “They will stretch the case out… and then we won’t even have what we have managed to negotiate for now,” Dharmendra said.