Bhubaneswar, Sept. 28: The Odisha government has formulated a legislation to grant property rights to slum dwellers and prevent the growth of new slums in urban areas.

The state cabinet on Thursday approved a draft legislation called “Odisha Property Rights to Slum dwellers and Prevention of New Slums Bill”. It will be taken up during the winter session.

“We are in the process of making a legislation for according property rights to slum dwellers and preventing the growth of new slums,” said chief minister Naveen Patnaik in a letter to Union minister for housing and urban poverty alleviation Kumari Selja.

Naveen urged the Centre to include Balasore, Jeypore, Jharsuguda, Jajpur and Jajpur Road under the Rajiv Awas Yojana, aimed at the rehabilitation of the urban poor. At present, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Berhampur, Rourkela, Sambalpur and Puri come under this scheme. So far, two pilot projects at Rangamatia and Mahisakhal slums in Bhubaneswar have been sanctioned.

Sources said the Centre had earlier advised the states to form slum rehabilitation and development policies and enact a legislation for identification, redevelopment, rehabilitation and conferment of property rights to slum dwellers and prevention of growth of new slums.

“We are the second state after Jammu and Kashmir to bring out a legislation for the rehabilitation of slum dwellers,” state housing and urban development minister Raghunath Mohanty told The Telegraph.

According to the draft legislation that received the cabinet’s nod, dwelling spaces would be made available to the slum dweller at an affordable cost, which will be determined taking into account his financial capability. On the other hand, stringent penal provisions such as imprisonment and fine would be made to check the growth of new slums.

An urban area slum development and rehabilitation committee will identify the slums. They will also decide on the date, slums formed after which will not be considered.

The slums will be classified into two categories — tenable and untenable. In the tenable category, the slum-dwellers will get property rights in the existing area by undertaking appropriate development and rehabilitation. In case of untenable slums, the slum dwellers will be rehabilitated at an alternative site.

The government will transfer government land free of premium for slum redevelopment and rehabilitation. The government will have also power to acquire private land for the purpose.

Besides, there will be mandatory reservation of at least 10 per cent of the built-up area in all apartments or group housing schemes for economically weaker sections and lower-income groups.

The developer will be given additional land equivalent to the extent utilised for the above purpose.

An Urban Poor Shelter Fund is proposed to be floated for providing financial support to urban local bodies, development authorities and Odisha State Housing Board to create houses for slum redevelopment and rehabilitation.