Union minister Puri rejects Cong leader's claim that nearly 40-45 pc unauthorised colonies won't be regularised

Rejecting the Delhi Congress's claim that nearly 40-45 per cent unauthorised colonies would not be regularised due to a Central government notification, Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri said areas having only nine per cent of total population cannot legally settle.

In a series of tweets, Puri slammed Delhi Congress chief Subhas Chopra, saying that it seems that he has not gone through the Bill on unauthorised colonies, passed by Lok Sabha last week, or has not understood it.

The Union housing and urban affairs minister said that Chopra misunderstood exclusion category in the notification.

On Sunday, Chopra had alleged that nearly 40-45 per cent unauthorised colonies in the national capital would not be regularised due to a notification issued by the BJP-ruled Centre.

"Such areas where people cannot legally settle include notified forest, prohibited areas of monuments, O zone around Yamuna river, Master Plan roads or existing operational roads etc. However, such areas have about nine per cent of the total population of UCs," Puri tweeted.

In another tweet, the Union minister said that for the first time, residents will be given ownership, mortgage, transfer rights on payment of extremely nominal charge whether they are settled on government or private land.