NEW DELHI: The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) standing committee is slated to propose a unified policy allowing resident welfare associations to adopt and maintain parks and green areas under a public-private partnership framework.
This proposal aims to address the ongoing challenges related to park maintenance and manpower shortages, officials said. Currently, the horticulture department maintains over 15,000 parks spread across 5,200 acres, but faces a shortage of malis. Under the new scheme, the RWAs can maintain parks using their own manpower, while the department will cover the maintenance charges, they said.
An official privy to the matter said, “The common policy recommends a monthly financial assistance of Rs 13,500 per acre across all 12 MCD zones, replacing the civic bodies of East, North and South Delhi, respectively. The civic body will also provide free compost from its green waste management centres to the participating resident welfare associations.”
Currently, the eligibility criteria for RWAs include being registered under the Societies Act, having completed more than three years since registration, maintaining a functional bank account, submitting audited financials and activity details from the past year, officials in the know of the matter said.
Introduced over a decade ago and later discontinued in 2022, the policy was aimed at encouraging park maintenance through community collaboration. However, it had to put on hold due to budgeting issues and pending dues.
The applications will be processed through the horticulture department, with monitoring to be carried out by designated supervisory staff.
The proposal is expected to be tabled at the upcoming standing committee meeting, which is slated for February 23 along with other proposals related to healthcare, horticulture and civic-related issues.
Further, the committee will table a proposal seeking the extension of the deadline for payment under the one-time property tax amnesty scheme ‘SUNIYO.’