Launching its Resident Welfare Association (RWA) wing, the Aam Aadmi Party today unveiled a "citizens empowerment plan" for RWAs and promised to give these bodies a legal sanction.
At a conference attended by representatives of over 700 RWAs from across Delhi, former chief minister and AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal announced the party's stand on setting up of a Citizens Local Area Development Fund after giving a legal sanctity to RWAs by passing an act in the state assembly.
Kejriwal said, after being elected, the AAP government's priority will be to empower the RWAs by creating a Citizens Local Area Development Fund in each assembly constituency of Delhi and this fund will be equal to that of the MLA Local Area Development Fund.
He proposed an amount of Rs 4 crore annually to RWAs that will be legally recognised once the RWA Act is passed, to carry out their local development, repair and welfare works without any external interference.
The former Delhi Chief Minister, however, added that to allow smooth functioning, every locality should have a single and registered RWA, which should have free and fair elections at regular intervals as per its constitution.
"As a part of this exercise, it is proposed that the RWA will have a GBM of all its members on a fixed day and time every month. All important decisions shall be taken in the GBM by the residents. RWA shall be responsible for subsequently implementing those decisions.
"The accounts of RWA shall be transparent and available for public inspection. They shall be annually audited and presented to the GBM. There shall be social audit of accounts at regular intervals," AAP's vision document on RWAs said.
Kejriwal said the AAP's stand was that there should be no scope for any external interference, including that of MP or MLA, in the works that recognised RWAs can do with public consultation in their respective areas.
He responded to queries from many representatives of RWAs, who raised the issues ranging from lack of cleanliness to ineffectiveness of civic bodies.
The party also announced setting up of its RWA wing on the occasion. Pandav Nagar RWA vice-president Ratnesh Gupta will head the AAP RWA wing.
