The Hindu 18.03.2010
Public hearing held for master plan
D. Radhakrishnan
| For people to raise objections and put forth suggestions |
Photo: M. Sathyamoorthy 
Expressing their views: Officials and residents participating in a public hearing in Udhagamandalam on Wednesday.
Udhagamandalam: In connection with the Modified Master Plan for Udhagamandalam which is in the process of being put in place by the civic administration, a public hearing was held here on Wednesday.
The District Revenue Officer S.Kuppuswamy presided.
Among those who submitted representations were members of the Nilgiris Chamber of Commerce and Industry and representatives of builders associations.
Speaking to The Hindu the Municipal Commissioner L.S.Girija said that the objective of the exercise was to provide a final opportunity to the people to raise objections or put forth suggestions relating to zoning regulations and development control rules for the consideration of the government.
Stating that about 130 representations had been received, she said that practically all of them were also in favour of scrapping the master plan.
To a query, she said that if there had been any representations relating to the environment or ecology they would have been taken into consideration but though an announcement regarding the public hearing had been made there was no one present to espouse the cause of the environment or ecology.
The Master Plan which is now in force was mooted in 1993 and came into being in 1997.
It will cease to be in force by 2011.
The Chairman, R.Rajendran, said that recommendations put forth by the Local Planning Authority (LPA) comprising all the councillors will be forwarded to the government for consideration.
When asked whether any environmentalist had been consulted before putting together the recommendations, he said that only members of the LPA had approved them.
The government will be requested to declare as residential areas places which were already developed before the existing Master Plan and subsequently converted into Agricultural Zones.
The areas declared as Primary Residential Zones in the existing Master Plan should remain so in the Modified Master Plan also.
Pockets within Primary Residential Zones which are now considered as Agricultural Zones should be treated as Primary Residential Zones.
No major change has been recommended in the Prohibited Zones surrounding the Government Botanical Garden, the Race Course and the Ooty Lake.
However it has been recommended that only for the existing buildings in areas surrounding Race Course, permission should be given to increase the built-up area by ten percent, subject to the height remaining below seven metres.
The Town Planning Officer M.Soundarajan pointed out that the views of the officials of the Agricultural Engineering Department, the Geo TechCell, Geology and Mines etc. had been incorporated in the existing Master Plan, it was pointed out.
