The Ministry of Housing in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour handed over 162 land titles to residents of Dazzel Housing Scheme, Paradise on the East Coast Demerara on Sunday.

According to the Government Information Agency (GINA) residents were able to receive titles to the lands they had been occupying for a number of years through the efforts of the Ministry of Housing and Water after the Paradise Multipurpose Co-op Society helped residents to regularise their lands.

Present at the titling ceremony Minister of Housing and Water Irfaan Ali told the residents that it was with great pride the ministry has noted the success of the village and it is the hope of the ministry that all members of the Co-op Society will get their titles by June 2010. Ali further told the residents that in any development there must be displacement and he called on all members to be regularised.

The objective of the ministry is to ensure that all members get on board and become regularised, GINA said.

The GINA release stated that there are currently 800 lots occupied with only 600 being registered, which was an indication of that there was still squatting in the area and the government with the aid of the Basic Needs Trust Fund will be investing more in the development of the housing scheme but there is need to safeguard the infrastructure that is put in place.

Meanwhile, Labour Minister Manzoor Nadir under whose sector the Co-op Society falls said there was a belief that if people squat ted they would be regularised but that should not be the case since persons should work to acquire their property. He assured the residents that government will work assiduously to improve the lives of the people with the knowledge that a lot has to be done to make life better for a lot of people.

There are 1,252 members in the Paradise Multipurpose Co-op Society. Of that number,  790 had regularized records and those persons will be receiving their titles Clive Nurse, Deputy Chief Labour Officer, Occupational Health and Safety Office said. He also noted that membership of the society helped to expedite regularisation.

GINA said that the residents of the housing scheme expressed their appreciation at being able to receive the titles to their lands and pointed out that it has opened doors that were previously closed to them.