New building bye-laws for Delhi announced

New Delhi, March 30 (IANS) Union Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday announced new building bye-laws for Delhi.

Revised after 33 years, the laws have been made "user-friendly through unification and simplification of a host of amendments made over the last three decades" as well as convergence of approvals by different agencies into a single platform.

"Delhi’s building bye-laws were last revised in 1983 and several amendments made over the last three decades, resulting in complexity and even confusion in understanding various changes and filing applications accordingly," Naidu said.

To do away with this problem, he said, the bye-laws were unified for easy reference, besides to simplify the processes.

Naidu said the new single-window mechanism would help ease construction business in the national capital besides promoting investment.

One common application form has been devised for online submission to the local body concerned instead of applying to various agencies like Delhi Fire Services, Delhi Jal Board, Delhi Urban Arts Commission and National Monuments Authority etc. apart from central ministries of forests, railways, defence etc.

The approval can be granted in just 30 days.

Applicants will not be required to make payments to various agencies separately and instead can make single payment electronically to the urban local body concerned.

For residential plots of sizes up to 105 square metres, the owners need not obtain sanction of building plans. They will just have to submit an undertaking, intimating about the construction along with the requisite fees and other documents to begin construction.

The number of documents to be submitted for obtaining building permits has been reduced from 40 to just 14, the minister said.

Also, to present an aesthetically pleasing and vibrant environment, public art would be promoted in built-up areas.