New Delhi: Approval from councillors will now be mandatory for RWAs and NGOs seeking to maintain parks and green areas under MCD‘s public-private partnership (PPP) scheme.The civic body passed a proposal on this during its house meeting Monday, along with the above amendment and increased the payment for park maintenance to up to Rs 13,500 per acre.A senior BJP councillor said the mandatory recommendation was introduced to avoid confusion and disputes among multiple RWAs operating in the same area. “There are multiple RWAs in an area, and many of them may claim to represent all residents. Councillors, being elected local representatives, are in a better position to provide recommendations,” the councillor said. The move comes amid a legal challenge faced by govt’s Delhi Lakshmi Yojana, which requires beneficiaries to obtain an endorsement letter from a local MP.MCD in the proposal accepted that due to a shortage of malis, the department was facing problems in maintaining parks and thus the process for inviting fresh applications started.The RWAs applying under the scheme must have completed three years of registration. “To get benefits under the scheme, elected representatives should apply to the deputy director, horticulture. Upon approval from the commissioner, an agreement will be signed between the director and RWA. These RWAs would upload the photos after an interval of time.”“However, no permanent changes would be allowed and no commercial activity would be allowed. No heavy pruning, pollarding etc will be allowed without permission. MCD will continue to maintain the grills, gazebos, gyms, children’s playing equipment in the parks and will regularly inspect such areas. MCD will provide compost to RWAs, prepared at different green waste centres, for free,” stated the proposal.The MCD commissioner will have the right to terminate the agreement without assigning any reason.Earlier, the erstwhile south, north, and east corporations paid different amounts for park maintenance per acre. It was Rs 13,500 per acre in the south, Rs 8,000 in the north, and Rs 8,500 in east Delhi. The initiative was, however, halted in 2022 when the corporation, experiencing financial constraints, couldn’t settle payments to RWAs for park upkeep. Several RWAs were paying from their pockets to maintain these parks.
