Meeting on objections, suggestions to draft development plan today

CHANDIGARH: After overcoming a plethora of hurdles, the Draft Development Plan (DDP) of the Faridabad–Ballabgarh Urban Complex for 2031 for 34,368 hectares to accommodate a population of 38.

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 28

After overcoming a plethora of hurdles, the Draft Development Plan (DDP) of the Faridabad–Ballabgarh Urban Complex for 2031 for 34,368 hectares to accommodate a population of 38.86 lakh is likely to be approved soon.

Faridabad Deputy Commissioner Sameer Pal Srow has called a meeting tomorrow to consider objections and suggestions to the DDP and take a decision to finalise the plan soon.

Sources say the Town and Country Planning Department and the Urban Local Bodies Department had notified the DDP for the urban complex on July 14, 2014, and July 18, 2014, respectively, and objections were invited from public.

However, the DDP notified by the Urban Local Bodies Department was challenged in the Punjab and Haryana High Court (Sanjeev Malhotra vs State of Haryana) on the ground that enough opportunity was not given to public for filing objections and the DDP had been planned for prospective year 2031, which is beyond the prospective regional plan of 2021.

The High Court, however, disposed of the case on April 30, 2015, with directions to the petitioners to file objections to the draft plan within 15 days.

Sanjeev Malhotra and others challenged the High Court verdict in the Supreme Court in 2015, which was disposed of on July 9, 2015, with a direction that the jurisdictional objections that may be raised by the petitioners shall be decided by a speaking order and the notification of the DDP be made only after a month of the decision and its service to the petitioners.

Sources say that after collecting information from the District Town Planner and the Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, the Department of Town and Planning passed a speaking order on August 10, 2016. The order has not yet been assailed in any court of law, they add.

“Amendments have been necessitated to the original plan on account of the Transit Oriented Development (TOD) policy, New Integrated Licensing Policy-2016, Affordable Group Housing Policy and 20 per cent Group Housing component in a residential sector. The draft amendments were notified on December 7, 2016, and people were given a month to file objections and suggestions,” said Srow.

He added a large number of objections and suggestions had been received and these would be considered in tomorrow’s meeting.

The final approval of the DDP, he said, would depend on the number and nature of objections.