Stormy winter session ends

Unauthorised colonies, health schemes on the fore

The five-day winter session of the Delhi Legislative Assembly ended on Friday. The issues that gained prominence were related to development, regularisation of unauthorised colonies, health infrastructure and welfare schemes. With MCD polls approaching, these issuses were bound to come up.

While the BJP blamed the government of cheating people in unauthorised colonies by not developing them for the last 13 years, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said development work will start soon. Dikshit and opposition leader V K Malhotra locked horns over the issue.

During Question Hour, Malhotra alleged that the government has “cheated and committed fraud” against people living at these colonies by stalling development work.

To this, Dikshit shot back, “What do you mean by fraud? I object to this word. This government was elected by people of this state and only they have the right to say. If you don’t like what we have been doing, then you can also form a government if people wish so.

Then you do what you want.” She demanded that the word “fraud” be removed from the proceedings.The issue of regularisation of illegal colonies was raised in all five days of the session. On Friday, Urban Development (UD) Minister A K Walia and former UD Minister Raj Kumar Chauhan also locked horns.

The opposition on Wednesday had said that development work at these colonies was stopped by Walia, he said he was not even the minister at the time when the orders to stop work was issued by the chief engineer of irrigation and flood control department.

Chauhan, too, stood up and said that though it is true he was the minister at the time the orders were issued, they did not have his signature. Issues relating to social welfare schemes for widows, old-age pension, BPL people, public distribution system and water supply occupied the house proceedings.

Several opposition MLAs also raised issues related to health infrastructure — dismal state of government hospitals, shortage of doctors and beds, and defunct machines.