The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has approved the conversion of 78 under-utilised community halls into Arogya Mandirs, expanding the city’s neighbourhood healthcare infrastructure while retaining parts of the facilities for community activities.
The decision was taken during an MCD House meeting on September 29 after a survey by the civic body’s community service department. The survey was conducted at the request of the MCD health department to identify halls that were being used infrequently and could accommodate healthcare services.
The selected facilities include community halls in Lado Sarai, Rohini D Block, Timarpur, Hakikat Nagar, Meenakshi Garden, Hari Nagar, Janakpuri and East Patel Nagar. MCD officials said the civic body initially shared a list of community halls with the Delhi government’s health department. Of these, 72 were found suitable on the basis of accessibility and other factors, while six more were added later.
The proposal allows the ground floor, or the ground and first floors where required, to be used for Arogya Mandirs. The remaining portions of the buildings will continue to be used for community activities, officials said. The House also authorised the MCD commissioner to issue future no-objection certificates to the health department for setting up additional Arogya Mandirs.
The civic body cited booking data to demonstrate the limited use of several halls. The Meenakshi Garden community hall recorded 11 bookings in 2024-25, while the Hari Nagar facility recorded 17. Hakikat Nagar had two bookings, East Patel Nagar had 12, Rohini had 13 and Rajendra Nagar had 14 bookings during the same period.
The proposed conversions will affect facilities with existing uses in some cases. At Meenakshi Garden, the ground floor is used for bookings and the upper floor houses a senior citizens’ recreation centre. At Hari Nagar, a physiotherapy centre operates on the first floor. The proposal, as described by MCD officials, will use only the designated floors for the Arogya Mandirs while retaining other activities in the remaining spaces.
The decision also triggered objections from the opposition. Rafia Mahir, an Aam Aadmi Party councillor from Sitaram Bazar, alleged that school buildings or school land were being used for Arogya Mandirs without a change in land use. She referred to a closed school building being used for a healthcare facility and questioned the legality of using school land for the purpose.
An MCD official rejected the allegation that any running school had been used. The official said the premises involved were either closed facilities or locations from which schools had been shifted. The official also said the civic body was not using entire plots, but only portions of them for healthcare services.
The approved plan will now require coordination between the MCD and the Delhi government’s health department for the allocation and conversion of the identified spaces. The proposal does not specify an opening date for the 78 Arogya Mandirs.
