One-time settlement policy for illegal buildings soon

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, May 20

Illegal buildings in the city could be regularised soon as the Local Bodies Department is coming up with a one-time settlement policy.

The state government sent a draft of the policy to the municipal corporations in January and sought objections on it.

This policy was to get approval in the cabinet meeting held recently, but due to the Shahkot by-election, it was kept pending.

It is expected that once the by-election is conducted, the policy would be implemented in the state.

Under the policy, instead of demolishing buildings, money would be taken from the building owners to regularize these.

The policy will benefit many commercial and residential buildings that have come up across the city in the past many years.

Even under-construction buildings would also get benefit of the policy. It has been made mandatory that before regularising, the building must have proper parking and fire safety standards.

The policy may lead to resentment among people who had got their buildings built by illegal means, in alleged connivance of officials, earlier but now they will have to spend money on getting these regularised.

It will help in generating revenue for the debt-ridden municipal corporations, which can start developmental works lying stalled due to fund crunch.

Atul Garg, a city resident, said, “It’s a great step as it will benefit in three ways — increase revenue, bring down corruption and consolidate vote bank.”

Another resident Vikas Kumar said it was a good policy prepared by the state government as it would give relief to a large number of people.

He said residents had been demanding this policy for a long time and work on giving final shape to it was on.