The residents of South and West Delhi can now hold marriage ceremonies and other social functions from swanky community centres at meagre cost.
The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) is planning to refurbish its existing community halls and convert them into air-conditioned (AC) ones, similar to the facilities available at banquet halls.
The Corporation has also planned that in future only air-conditioned halls with ultra-modern facilities will be constructed. Officials of the Corporation said that this would relieve the residents as they would be spared from spending hefty amounts on banquet halls or farm houses.
Sources said that the project would begin with the Community hall in Rajouri Garden, West Delhi. It will be converted into an AC hall and later other Community halls will be renovated as well. At present, only half of the total wards in SDMC have Community Centres.
"We have 54 Community halls in 104 wards falling under the jurisdiction of SDMC. We will be renovating the existing halls and simultaneously ensure that only AC halls with modern facilities are constructed in future," said a senior officer of the Corporation. Initially, the Corporation plans to upgrade its eight A-category Community Centers and later other Community Centers will be included in the plan.
As officials pointed out, the idea is to generate additional revenue to the cash-strapped civic body by upgrading the existing infrastructure. Out of the total 208 Community Centers in all three Municipal Corporations in Delhi, the SDMC is responsible for 54 of them.
At present, the charge of A-category Community Center is fixed at Rs 20,000 per day, while that of the E-category Community halls are Rs 1,500 per day. An official said the Community Centers will be equipped with modern facilities like air conditioners, fire-protection system and modern kitchen equipments. The facilities will be designed to be eco-friendly and remodeled by renovating and extending the existing structure to create extra space.
"All facilities will be upgraded soon. This will generate additional revenue to the Corporation as the upgraded Community Center would be rented out on higher charges," said the official. He added that the Community Centers will be made user-friendly with facilities like ramps for the physically challenged, marble floorings and bigger halls to accommodate more people.
"looking into the needs of the public and lack of affordable place for functions, the decision is expected to benefit the public. The Community Centers will be upgraded keeping in view the requirement of people for various purposes especially wedding," he added.