The urban development ministry is all set to expand the National Capital Region (NCR) by adding more districts from neighbouring Haryana. Jind and Karnal in all probability will soon join NCR, the largest urban agglomeration in the world.
Congress-ruled Haryana is holding polls in October and the inclusion of the two towns is an attempt to limit the growing presence of Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party in the state, believe experts.
States like Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh have been pitching to get more districts included in NCR as the addition is likely to benefit in the form of boost to real-estate pricing, investments and development.
The move is likely to ease the burden on Delhi and the satellite towns of Gurgaon and Noida. The NCR includes 19 districts and it was last expanded in July 2013 when three more districts ? Haryana?s Mahendragarh and Bhiwani and Rajasthan?s Bharatpur were added to it. Along with Delhi, the total NCR area is now at 45,887sq km.
?NCR planning board is meeting on Tuesday. The size of NCR would be reworked in the meeting? said an urban development ministry official.
