Urban Planning

‘Govt has favoured builders for 10 years’

Wednesday, 21 April 2010 07:08 administrator

Hindustan Times 21.04.2010

‘Govt has favoured builders for 10 years’

The Opposition has blamed the government-builder nexus for the city’s crumbling infrastructure.

The allegations were made during a debate on Mumbai’s infrastructure problems.

Opposition leader in the Assembly, Eknath Khadse, said that the state favoured certain builders, who redeveloped mill lands and slums pockets under slum rehabilitation schemes.

Khadse demanded a probe into the favours granted to many leading builders and developers by the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party in the past ten years.

The allegations could be embarrassing for a senior Maharashtra leader from Congress. Launching an attack on the government for various land deals in the past decade, Khadse wondered why property of seven mills–Kohinoor, Indian United (2 and 3), Apollo, Elphinstone, Jupitor and New Hind--was amalgamated for redevelopment proposals. “Prime land was given to developers while 33 per cent of it was given to the civic body and Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA),” Khadse alleged. “The government lost Rs 1,000 crore in this deal while developers like DLF and India Bulls made money by constructing swanky commercial and residential buildings.”

Khadse also alleged that there were irregularities in the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA). “MHADA is planning to redevelop transit camps though privatisation. I want MHADA to redevelop all 56 transit camps so lower and middle class people get houses,” Khadse said.

He made allegations of fraud in the redevelopment of police colonies too. Chief Minister Ashok Chavan will reply to the debate on Wednesday.

The Opposition has also demanded a comprehensive policy for the city’s development in next 25 years.

Khadse added that a time-bound action plan was necessary to improve civic amenities, basic infrastructure and augmenting power generation and water supply.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 21 April 2010 07:15

Owners ignore GHMC demands

Wednesday, 21 April 2010 05:31 administrator

Deccan Chronicle 21.04.2010

Owners ignore GHMC demands

April 21st, 2010

DC Correspondent

Hyderabad, April 20: The Building Penalisation Scheme (BPS) is crawling as owners of thousands of unauthorised buildings in the city are showing reluctance to pay the remaining penalisation charges to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and get the structures regularised.

The civic body seems to have lost its “weight” as its demolition threat too has failed to make the owners pay the charges.

Nearly 50,000 BPS applicants are not coming forward to complete the regularisation process. What’s more, there are another 35,000 applications which lack proper documentation.

The GHMC chief city planner, Mr G.V. Raghu, confirmed that, of the total 2.03 lakh applications received under the BPS, only 94,000 had been cleared till date.

“We have been issuing notices to applicants. The last date for clearance of BPS applications is June 30. Now, we are telling the applicants that a special demolition drive would be taken up after June 30 besides imposing heavy penalties on unauthorised structures,” he said.

It may be mentioned that the corporation has set itself a target of collecting at least Rs 400 crore by disposing off the pending BPS applications. Now, the GHMC town planning officials are going to the door steps of the BPS applicants and asking them to pay penalisation charges for disposal of their applications.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 21 April 2010 05:45

HMDA to earmark heritage zones

Wednesday, 21 April 2010 05:13 administrator

The Hindu 21.04.2010

HMDA to earmark heritage zones

T. Lalith Singh

Zones for conservation include Golconda-Charminar route and Habshi Kaman
HMDA favours property tax waiver for listed heritage structures

HYDERABAD: Seeking to provide impetus to the initiative on conservation of heritage structures in and around the city, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has come out with new concepts.

As part of this, it has been proposed to earmark heritage zones and avenues in places that boast of historicity and architectural values too. Such zones that could be considered for specific regulations aimed at conservation include the ancient route between Golconda fort and Charminar passing through the fort's main street and Habshi Kaman.

Market stretch

While this falls in circles V and VII of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), also proposed in circle V is the historic market stretch of Laad Bazar and the Patherghatti area which spreads into the Circle IV too. The proposal also makes a mention on the pedestrian character of General Bazar in the GHMC Circle VIII.

The HMDA, which for the first time had integrated heritage buildings and precincts in the draft revised master plan notified for objections and suggestions, floats the idea of identifying ‘heritage avenues' for façade regulations.

This is meant for conservation of façade at locations such as Patherghatti and General Bazar and not allowing alterations and thus ensuring that the unique character is not lost.

A presentation for the Heritage Conservation Committee brought out by the HMDA stresses the need to suggest and prescribe architectural guidelines for such areas on the basis of certain unique characteristics and with respect to urban design, heritage and environment. Specific urban design guidelines have to be formulated for granting new development permissions by the GHMC, it states.

Meanwhile, the authority has mooted another proposal to have property tax for the listed heritage structure waived.

The waiver provides for the money thus saved to be ploughed back into the maintenance and upkeep of these structures.

The idea had been discussed with the GHMC and is to be forwarded to the government for consideration.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 21 April 2010 05:14

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