298 Delhi Families Forced To Leave Their Homes Before Diwali As DDA Cuts Off Power Supply

Last Updated:October 15, 2025, 17:09 IST

Residents in Mukherjee Nagar, Delhi, vacate homes before Diwali after DDA cuts power due to structural flaws, with demolition set after SC declines intervention

Structural flaws were found in the apartments, leading to evacuation. (Representational Image)

The festive cheer of Diwali has been overshadowed by anxiety and despair for the residents of Signature View Apartments in Mukherjee Nagar, Delhi, as they hurriedly vacated their homes on Tuesday, October 14. The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) had disconnected electricity to the high-rise complex a day earlier, following the expiry of the court-mandated deadline to vacate the premises on October 12.

Shilpi, clutching two plastic bags filled with clothes, said as she walked towards her car, “Our festivals are ruined. When we should be decorating our homes for Diwali, we are moving houses." Her husband, Vicky, who waited in the car to return to a rented apartment nearby, added, “A person builds a home with years of hard work, invests in it, and decorates it, but everything is gone in an instant. The rental rates in the area are sky-high, and the facilities we had here are nowhere to be found. It feels like a compromise." The couple lived in a three-bedroom apartment on the fifth floor of L-Block.

Outside the complex, trucks carrying household goods moved in and out continuously, while security personnel deployed by the DDA and the Residents Welfare Association (RWA) monitored entry. Vijay Singh, a DDA guard, held a plastic bag containing keys to vacant flats and checked each vehicle. “The movement has increased over the past few days. Unlike other high-rises in NCR with digital entry systems, we rely on phone calls, which are difficult due to the power cut," Singh said.

Constructed between 2007 and 2009 and allocated under the DDA housing scheme in 2011-12, Signature View Apartments had recently been found to have significant structural flaws. The complex, named for its view of the Signature Bridge from some blocks, had drawn residents’ ire over safety concerns and municipal responses.

Ashu Vij, a resident of L-Block, said, “We spent Rs 3 crore on our home, yet we are being treated like slum dwellers. My child has breathing problems and needs a nebuliser, but the MCD ignored our pleas and cut off electricity. They even damaged the meters. Are we criminals?" He claimed that assurances by MCD Mayor Raja Iqbal Singh allowing residents to stay until October 25 had not been honoured.

According to the apartment’s security in-charge, only 298 of the 336 flats have been vacated so far. Residents are required to hand over certain documents to the guards upon leaving. Mahesh Gopali, relocating to a rented flat in Ashok Vihar, said, “Even if we pay Rs 1 lakh in rent, we won’t get a home like ours. The space, comfort, and design we had here are unavailable elsewhere. But plaster is falling, cracks are appearing on the stairs, and exposed iron rods make the building unsafe."

In March, the DDA had issued a tender to demolish and rebuild Signature View Apartments. Last week, the Supreme Court declined to entertain a petition challenging the Delhi High Court order that barred any stay on demolition.

News india 298 Delhi Families Forced To Leave Their Homes Before Diwali As DDA Cuts Off Power Supply

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