Open house: Should admn come up with a one-time settlement policy for building violations in Chandigarh?

Prefer ONE-TIME SETTLEMENT

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Alterations as per genuine requirements
Residents mostly make alterations in their houses as per genuine requirements. Over the period of time consumer preferences have changed. Residents now require more covered area with lesser open spaces. The family sizes have increased and so have the property prices. Under the given situations it is suggested that the necessary approvals be accorded to alterations in properties with one-time suitable penalties. Irregularities effecting the environment, immediate neighbours and the general outlook marring the beauty of the city should be demolished and expenses incurred be borne by defaulting residents.

NPS Sohal, OHIO, USA

Need of the hour

One-time settlement policy for all sorts of building violations is the need of the hour. Need based changes made on properties by residents should be regularised keeping in view present day requirements. FAR should be increased for need based changes provided they are structurally safe as per building bylaws. Views of RWAS and other associations must be considered before finalising a one-time settlement policy.

Col TBS Bedi (retd), Mohali

Consider residents’ suggestions for policy

The Chandigarh Administration must come up with one-time settlement of building violations in residential, commercial and industrial areas. Regular changes in building plans and their looks by owners would alter basic structure of the planned city. Genuine changes required in structures can be allowed by the administration. Suggestions can sought from owners before deciding the one-time settlement policy.

Wg Cdr Jasbir Singh Minhas (retd), Mohali

Keep violations in check across city

Many owners do not adhere to specified norms. It’s their greed that coerces them more and more area in violation of the building plan. Such owners should be heavily fined and brought to book. The department concerned must check for building violations.

MR Bhateja, NayaGaon

Will send wrong message to owners

Regularising violations will send a wrong message to the public. It will show that everyone is free to break rules, which will pave the way for unlimited changes. However, given the risk to structures because of violations, regular checks should be conducted to ensure that people follow building bylaws. Allottees should be made to pay hefty penalties for violations. There should be no objection to minor or technical violations and irregularities. It needs to be ensured that structural safety, privacy and rights of others are not compromised in any way by regularisation of violations.

Vijay Malia, Chandigarh

Allow awnings on doors and windows

Once a building is built as per approved plan and declared complete and occupied by the competent authority an occupation certificate is given to its owner. Load bearing capacities of the premises should not be allowed to alter at any cost. This is total risky affair as vested interests will not stop at any point. Only lightweight aluminium or fibre awnings on doors and windows to save residents from extreme vagaries of weather should be allowed as per the government policy.

Vijay Shukla, Chandigarh

UT must consider residents’ demand

Architects and city’s heritage conservationists are demanding that illegal constructions should be removed to protect the city’s character. The UT Urban Planning Department has consistently flagged the large-scale illegal construction and colonisation in villages of Chandigarh. The department has also warned of ‘serious consequences’ of allowing unplanned construction while stating that these will change the character of the planned city. Unauthorised construction picked up pace after city’s villages were transferred to the Municipal Corporation. Chandigarh Housing Board must examine the demand of residents for one-time regularisation of additional construction.

Sanjay Chopra, Mohali

Allow people to make changes in buildings

The one-time settlement policy should cover non-compoundable violations in buildings within the municipal area of the UT. It is not practical to demolish changes made in buildings. Efforts should be made to maintain balance between need based changes in view of requirements of the public and the peculiar character of city. But the administration should give people an opportunity to get violations in their residential and commercial buildings regularised by paying reasonable fee. People should be allowed to make structural changes in their buildings if required after taking mandatory clearance from departments concerned.

Anita K Tandon, Mundi Kharar

Tell residents to declare violations

A big no to one-time settlement policy for all sorts of violations in all types of buildings. Rather the administration should ask residents to declare any type of violation in their buildings while depositing property tax and fix penalty accordingly. The administration must divide the City Beautiful into zones and ask Estate Office officials to personally visit all sorts of buildings for checking violations and file report before calculation of the property tax.

Savita Kuthiala, Chandigarh

Convene meeting of all stakeholders

Yes, the authorities must come up with one-time settlement policy for all sorts of building violations in the UT. Age old rules and regulations for checking building violations should be done away. The administration should convene a joint meeting of all stakeholders and associations to get their views on building violations in order to form one-time settlement policy.

Vidya Sagar Garg, Panchkula

Administration can earn enough revenue

The administration has issued many warnings, instructions and even demolished buildings in residential, commercial and industrial areas for violations. Still, people make changes in their buildings as per their requirement. It is good if administration brings onetime settlement policy for all sort of building violations. It will provide relief to residents as they fear that the authorities concerned may take action against them. The administration can earn enough revenue by imposing genuine penalty for regularisation of violations in buildings.

Sukhwant Bhullar, Chandigarh

Categorise building violations in city

Building violations are witnessed on large scale in the city not only in residential but in commercial and industrial areas also. Barring need- based changes, other building violations should be dealt with depending on their type. Building violations should be categorised into minor, major and dangerous and addressed on case to case basis instead of one-time settlement.

RPS Chopra, Chandigarh

Maintain the standard of City Beautiful

Chandigarh is a modern and beautiful city that came up under the supervision of Le-Corbusier. No one should be allowed to make changes in building. The administration must frame laws to prevent building violations. The administration must maintain the standard of the City Beautiful.

Sumesh Kumar Badhwar, Mohali

Alteration weakens building foundation

It is the laxity of the administration to timely curb the menace of violations in buildings in the UT. Now from safety perspective, it has become necessary to remove violations as it may weaken the foundation of buildings and pose a risk to habitants. One-time settlement is no suitable option. The administration should allow only specified alterations suitable as per the building area with permission and on payment of nominal fee.

Abhilasha Gupta, Mohali

Divide violations into two categories

Violations should be divided into two broad categories namely 1) illegal which cannot be compounded 2) unauthorised but compoundable. Strict action should be taken for the first category by demolishing violations. In case of the second category, owners must be fined and the process of regularising violations be initiated on priority. The authorities can impose fine and make it easy for owners to comply with building bylaws by providing them an opportunity of across-the-table negotiations if needed for regularisation of violations. Officials should be deployed for carrying out these proceedings.

Bharat Bhushan Sharma, Chandigarh

Penalty can be imposed on violators

The administration should take a lenient view on violations in all sorts of buildings. It should bring one-time settlement policy for violations. Penalties can be imposed on residents to deter them from making repeated changes in their buildings. This will help the administration earn revenue and maintain Chandigarh’s beauty.

Avinash Goyal, Chandigarh

Remodel UT on basis of violations

The City Beautiful is known for its architecture and lush green gardens. It needs time and effort for remodelling the UT. It can be done by anticipating potential violations. Regular inspection of buildings is need of the hour. Keeping a check on changes in blueprint during construction of a building will ensure building bylaws compliance.

Charu Malhotra, Mohali

Imposing penalty is knee-jerk reaction

The decision of the administration to hike penalty imposed on building violations and misuse of the premises appears to be a knee-jerk reaction. From the legality point of view it is right but such a huge financial burden is not justified. There was already a demand by residents to regularise changes in a rational and genuine manner. The regularisation will facilitate a smooth transition to the new requirement of the building and premises norms. Over the years, need-based changes have been made in around 50,000 flats. Nevertheless, the administration has not regularised these properties and issued notices to most allottees. The UT Administration could have carried out this exercise in a consultative manner. It would have benefited from this by avoiding long drawn litigations that are possible in future.

Dr Anil Kumar Yadav, Chandigarh

Penalty to regularise building violations

The one-time settlement policy has been in vogue since quite some time. Therefore, the administration must come up with this policy because people have started building store rooms on their premises. If such construction does not create obstruction or inconveniences other resident, it should be regularised on payment of genuine fine. Moreover, this fine can be used for the upgradation of infrastructure in UT schools.

Manseerat Kaur, Chandigarh

Form committee to examine violations

Chandigarh has a unique status of model city. Domestic, commercial and industrial areas have specific design characteristics in the UT. No violations and structural changes should be allowed in buildings. To allow one-time changes, a committee should be formed comprising civil, environment and commercial experts to examine the type and quantum of building violations and grant one-time approval after payment of penalty. Thereafter, no violation should be tolerated. Inspectors may be deployed to carry out periodical checks of buildings to ensure that there is no violation. City’s status must be maintained at all cost.

Sqn Ldr Manjit Singh Johar (retd), Chandigarh

Give more freedom to building owners

The need to preserve the heritage of Chandigarh has led to various types of complexities in building bylaws, which are ever-changing and different for different areas. The authorities must immediately come up with a new one-time settlement policy with more freedom to owners of buildings. There should be less focus on preserving the city’s heritage.

Saikrit Gulati, Chandigarh

QUESTION

The Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh, will soon start challaning residents for not segregating garbage, including dry, wet, sanitary and domestic, in four different bins. Do you think the City Beautiful is ready for this penalty or should there be more awareness, as till now, only dry and wet wastes are being segregated by most residents?

Suggestions in not more than 70 words can be sent to openhouse@tribunemail.com