Delhi Slum Rehabilitation Plan Targets Four Lakh Families
Delhi is preparing to expand its slum rehabilitation programme to a much larger group of residents, with a new policy framework expected to cover around four to five lakh families living in Jhuggi-Jhopri clusters.
The plan combines in-situ rehabilitation with limited relocation, aiming to provide multi-storey homes without severing residents from jobs, schools and established community networks. The first phase is expected to include 17 settlements, with surveys and groundwork planned across locations including Seelampur, Sultanpuri and Lajpat Nagar. The exercise will be significant because the eligibility benchmark has been extended to settlements established up to January 1, 2025. That change is expected to bring a much larger number of households into the rehabilitation process than earlier eligibility rules allowed. At the centre of the Delhi slum rehabilitation plan is a shift towards keeping families within, or close to, their existing neighbourhoods wherever feasible.
For residents whose livelihoods depend on nearby informal work, markets, transport links and social networks, this approach could reduce the economic disruption often associated with relocation to peripheral housing projects. The scale of the programme also makes the quality of planning critical. Government directions call for rehabilitation colonies to include schools, health centres, anganwadi facilities and playgrounds, rather than treating housing as a standalone construction exercise. For a city already facing pressure on public services, these facilities will need to be delivered alongside homes and connected to transport, water, sanitation and drainage networks. Implementation is expected to rely heavily on public-private partnerships.
Authorities have been directed to move ahead with tenders for initial clusters and prepare project documents for additional settlements, with a broader pipeline of projects planned. The model could accelerate construction, but its success will depend on transparent beneficiary verification, clear rehabilitation timelines and strong safeguards against displacement during the transition. The Delhi slum rehabilitation plan therefore represents more than a housing expansion programme. Its long-term urban impact will depend on whether new homes are integrated into functioning neighbourhoods with reliable civic services, employment access and climate-resilient infrastructure. As surveys and project preparation advance, the next test will be turning eligibility announcements into secure, liveable homes without creating new pockets of exclusion elsewhere in the city.
