336 of DDA's 16,000 flats are up for grabs in Mukherjee Nagar and Kalyan Vihar. Vimal Chander Joshi takes you on a tour of the area
Acluster of tenfloored buildings dominating the landscape in f Mukherjee Nagar f has become the cynosure of all eyes as soon as DDA put up its `for sale' tag here. On offer till December 24 are 336 threeBHK (bedroom, hall, kitchen) units.
These apartments are available in the price range of R58 to R81 lakh and are adjacent to an old colony (also by the DDA), where people moved in as far back as 1995. If you look closely at the rates of the existing occupied flats, one can gauge the rates of the new flats on offer. “The old DDA flats cost around R1 crore for a threeBHK unit on the ground or first floor. But the second floor flats are relatively smaller and, thus, cheaper. These have two bedrooms and are priced at about R80 lakh,“ says JP Sawhney of Sawhney Properties.
These new flats are symbolic of the change this area is witnessing. Paramjeet Singh, a property dealer in the area, is happy about it. “My family came to this place from Pakistan (during Independence) when there was nothing but a jungle here.
We used to study under the shade of trees and there were reptiles and frogs everywhere.
We never imagined it would change like this. The development began two decades ago with a sudden influx of young students getting training for civil services examination at the coaching centres here and now it has become an education hub of sorts,“ he says.
As a result, the number of IAS coaching centres have increased from two to 75. “We are happy that local business has got a boost because of this.
It's very evident in the fact that from just two property dealers, there are now more than two dozen,“ says Singh.
The rise in the population of young people has meant more eateries, readymade garment shops, cyber cafes, phone booths, hairdressing salons and parlours, which has made the place a beehive of activity.
Much to the delight of residents, the surge in the population has been complemented with adequate infrastructure and improved connectivity.
Merely two km from the DDA colony is the GTB Nagar Metro station, which has conto Gurgaon. To reach the station, one needs to take Batra Road ( locally called this because of the popular cinema hall of the same name), which also gives these (DDA) flats easy access to the Ring Road.
The other end of the Batra Road connects to the Dhirpur Project, to be launched soon by the DDA.
Since the flats are just four km from the Kamla Nagar market and two km from the Kingsway Camp market, residents are spoilt for choice in this area. Soon, Delhi University's law faculty will also be shifting to its new campus on Batra Road, giving a boost to the educational infrastructure here.
However, not everyone is happy with the changes. Some find the influx of students an intrusion and say the infrastructure does not provide sufficient support to the rising population.
“I had shifted from Kamla Nagar to Mukherjee Nagar 15 years ago because I wanted some peace and quiet. But it is now as bad as Kamla Nagar in terms of the chaos and traffic woes. After these 336 flats are sold, one can just imagine the state of Batra Road, which already remains clogged with traffic. Earlier, I could reach Kamla Nagar in seven minutes, but now it takes me 10-15 minutes only to move out of Mukherjee Nagar,“ rues local resident Surinder Sonik. DDA GETS TO DO THE MAINTENANCE DDA will maintain the usually neglected common areas like staircases and shafts of the flats that it will allot. A large number of the nearly 16,000 flats that are part of the new housing scheme will enjoy the housing authority's healing touch. The allottees, however, will have to pay a one-time lump sum amount for the maintenance.
The cost of the houses in the new scheme will now include maintenance charges. Allottees of multi-storey flats with lifts will have to pay 15% of the total amount as one-time maintenance amount and allottees of flats in up to five-storey buildings will pay 12%. DDA will now plaster the façade of apartment blocks, repair staircases, railings, balconies and floors and also take care of the common drainage lines
Flat owners in Mukherjee Nagar pay R200 per month as maintenance charges, while in Kalyan Vihar, the charges are R300 per month.
With DDA taking responsibility for the upkeep of the common areas of staircase, new residents will now not have to worry about wearand-tear expenses. Now, it is to be seen whether DDA stays true to its word or not.
Kalyan Vihar Kalyan Vihar, just four km from Mukherjee Nagar, has 24 DDA flats on offer. Part of an extension to a small DDA colony in the area, the flats are nestled between Vijay Nagar on one side and a slum on the other. Before you enter the colony, you can find small kids scurrying around and few can be seen defecating near the entrance. Roads inside the locality are in a bad shape and sewer lines remain choked.
“The size of the slum is much larger than the DDA locality, so residents don't feel safe here. The boundary wall is just three feet tall and anyone can climb over it,“ says Verma, a resident.
The flats will be allotted after a draw of lots for R30 to R36 lakh while the market price is around more than R50 lakh.
