CM announces Rs 700 crore for slum development
Delhi Chief Minister on Wednesday said the Delhi Government is committed to the welfare of poor families living in slum clusters, which is why a dedicated budget of Rs 700 crore has been allocated for their development.
Through this fund, Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, Atal Canteens, Basti Vikas Kendras, road and drainage improvements, and other essential facilities are being developed in slum areas, she said after attending the Jhuggi–Jhopdi Swabhiman Sabha held at B-Block in Wazirpur Industrial Area.
Addressing the gathering, the Chief Minister highlighted the long-standing issues and neglect faced by poor families living in Delhi’s slum settlements for decades. She said that previous Governments treated these settlements merely as vote banks and failed to provide basic amenities such as toilets, parks, roads, drainage systems, and permanent housing.
She alleged that their approach was to “keep the poor poor and keep them frightened”. Previous governments spent crores of rupees to build 50,000 flats but never allotted them to the poor, leaving them to deteriorate and crumble.
The Chief Minister said Prime Minister Narendra Modi understood the hardships of the poor as his own, which is why he launched nationwide welfare initiatives such as the construction of toilets, the Ujjwala gas connection scheme, permanent housing, free ration, and several other schemes, benefiting millions of poor families today.
She made it clear that every slum resident in Delhi now has the right to a permanent home. She added that previous Governments allowed ready-built government flats to lie unused for years, causing them to decay, whereas her government is ensuring that every poor family receives a dignified permanent home.
The Chief Minister further announced that the process of issuing new ration cards, which had been halted for nearly 15 years, will be restarted, cancelling cards of ineligible beneficiaries and issuing new ones to genuine needy families.
Similarly, discontinued pension schemes are also being revived. She said that after her government came into office, all suspended processes related to ration cards, pensions, and other welfare schemes have been reactivated. She emphasised that development can only be sustained when all public representatives, Members of Parliament, MLAs, and councillors work in the same direction.
On this occasion, the Chief Minister appealed to the public to strengthen the momentum of development by voting in support of BJP candidate Veena Aseja from Ward 65, Ashok Vihar, in the MCD polls on November 30.
