GoM meets on Delhi sealing issue

New Delhi, Sep 25 (UNI) The Group of Ministers (GoM), formed to seek a solution to the crisis arising after the Supreme Court struck down provisions of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Act 2006, is meeting this evening even as the apex court reserved its order on sealing issue.

The meeting, headed by Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil, was attended by Union Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy, Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Meira Kumar, Minister for Urban Development Ajay Maken and Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit.

It had been decided to meet today in the last meeting, Mr Reddy told reporters.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court today reserved its judgement on petitions challenging the notifications permitting mixed land use in about 2,200 residential colonies spread all over the capital.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal and Mr Justice C K Thakker and Mr Justice R V Raveendran, however, indicated that the court would announce the verdict on the notifications dated September 7 and September 15, 2006 before the court closed for Dussehra holidays.

The GOM had been formed after widespread violence during Delhi Bandh on September 20 by traders to protest against continuing sealing of shops in residential areas despite the Septemeber 15 notification by the Delhi government declaring 2,183 roads in various areas of the city as commercial/mixed use roads.

The government filed an affidavit before the apex court on September 21 giving details of the Delhi Master Plan 2001 and the amendments brought about by it in the document to provide relief to traders.

On Septemeber 15, in a massive relief for traders in Delhi, living under the constant fear of sealing of their shops after expiry of the September 16 deadline by the Supreme Court, the Delhi government today notified nearly 2,200 roads/streets in the capital as either commercial or mixed land use streets.

As per the notification, which was cleared by Lt Governor B L Joshi this afternoon, more than 2000 roads or streets in E, F and G colonies while nearly 200 roads in C and D colonies, had been declared commercial, mixed land use or pedestrian shopping streets following their listing by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi earlier that week.

The notification by the Delhi government came after the Centre last night issued a corrigendum in relevant sections of the MCD Act, empowering the Delhi government to notify modified land use norms.

The notification of these roads as commercial/mixed use streets was sure to bring tremendous relief to small traders of Delhi, who had been dreading sealing of their commercial establishments on the expiry of the September 16 deadline issued by the Supreme Court to the MCD for sealing of shops in residential areas.

The MCD had on September 11 notified 1969 roads in E, F and G colonies as commercial or mixed land use streets as per the September 7 notification of the Urban Development Ministry amending the Master Plan 2001.

The list of roads, pertaining to the E, F and G colonies in Delhi for which a flexible mixed land policy had been prescribed by the amended Master Plan, included 682 commercial streets -- streets with more than 70 per cent commercialisation, 573 mixed use streets (those with more that 50 per cent commercialisation), 599 pedestrian shopping streets (streets of less than 6 m ROW in E,F and G colonies) and 125 roads/streets already notified as mixed use streets and now identified as commercial streets.

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