Open house: Should construction outside lal dora be regularised in Chandigarh

Consider rising cost of living in cities

Rapid urbanisation is not only putting pressure on the cities, but is also affecting the surrounding villages. The rising cost of living is forcing people to settle in the villages adjoining the cities. The authorities concerned should take cognisance of this and take necessary steps to regularise the constructions in these villages. The authorities can levy suitable penalties.

NPS Sohal, Chandigarh

Don’t regularise constructions

Over the time, people living in villages have started misusing facilities. People are constructing buildings illegally and giving them on high rentals. This needs to be checked. The Administration, therefore, should not regularise constructions outside the lal dora. People living in villages should be allowed to carry out constructions strictly as per the rules and regulations. Growing population in villages should not have any bearing on the norms.

VINEET GANDHI, Chandigarh

QUESTION

It’s been over a year since the MC took over the waste processing plant from Jaypee, but it has failed to upgrade the machinery. The city produces 500 MT of waste daily, but the plant can process only 70 MT. This has led to heaps of waste at the dumping ground. What needs to be done to resolve the issue?

Suggestions in not more than 70 words can be sent to [email protected]

Take steps to control population

The modernisation and development of villages shouldn’t come at the cost of converting the agricultural land into concrete jungle. There are already enough big modern concrete houses built by the villagers on their fields, thereby lessening the area of their fields. Instead of regularising construction undertaken outside the lal dora area due to growing population of the villages, steps should be taken to control the population. The bye-laws must not be changed to legalise the changes.

Simran Sidhu, Chandigarh

UT must demarcate lal dora areas

The UT must ensure identifiable demarcation of lal dora land before regularising new constructions. If the new constructions have been raised beyond these demarcations, the Administration must not take any action. They should instead ask the authorities concerned in Punjab to act against such constructions as per the law.

SC Luthra, Chandigarh

Need to extend boundaries

With the increase in family size, there is a need to extend the boundaries of lal dora. Construction outside lal dora can be regularised as one time measure, provided it is not hampering the civic issue like water supply, drainage, sewerage system, etc.

Col TBS Bedi (Retd), Mohali

Prepare plan for developing villages

The committee set up by the UT should prepare a plan for the development of villages, keeping in view the growing population. Facilities like electricity, water, roads, education and health should be provided to the residents. Mostly, daily wagers and poor people live in UT villages. They have built their houses with hard earned money, so it is the responsibility of the Administration to take care of their interests.

Sumesh Kumar Badhwar, Mohali

No commercial activities

Status of villages was retained in the development of new cities on compassionate grounds and to avoid people getting uprooted. But now they have been using this latitude to exploit resources and make money. Commercial activities should not be allowed in villages. New housing plans for villages should be similar to that for the UT. No relaxation should be extended to the inhabitants.

Ashok Kumar Goel, Panchkula

Imperative to develop villages

It is a welcome step by the UT Administration to develop the Chandigarh villages. Lal dora land is generally used by a village to store its produce or to house the cattle. Though lal dora land cannot be registered, a certificate of ownership can be issued to the land owners. Development of villages is the need of the hour as the population is growing with every passing day.

MR Bhateja, Nayagaon

It Can encourage wrongdoers

At the onset, it is difficult to ascertain how and why the Administration usually turns a blind eye to the unlawful developments. If there is no provision to extend the lal dora limit, it would be difficult to make a decision on the illegal constructions. On the other hand, if ignored, it can encourage the wrongdoers in future. Therefore, a high-level committee comprising legal experts should be constituted to decide the course of action.

Surinder Paul Wadhwa, Mohali

Special building bylaws needed

Development plans should be prepared in consultation with the residents, for all lal dora and extended lal dora areas in each village. These areas are fraught with rampant illegal construction, gross commercialisation and over population. In order to accommodate increasing population, the Administration should allow construction of four-storey buildings in villages. Special buildings bylaws need to be framed for the village population.

Anita K Tandon, Kharar

Take suggestions from experts

UT Administration should regularise the construction undertaken outside lal dora limits. This is the need of the hour as the population of villages is growing. However, it needs to be kept in mind that such regularisation should not harm the city’s character. Before regularising constructions outside lal dora, the Administration should take suggestions from the experts in the field.

Adish Sood, Amloh

Formulate scheme for regularisation

Since lot of construction and development works have happened outside the lal dora area, the Administration should formulate a scheme to regularise such constructions. Water supply, sewerage, proper lighting and roads should be on the priority list of the Administration. Before regularising constructions outside the lal dora limits, they must ensure all these facilities.

Vijay Malia, Chandigarh

Upgrade villages to add to city’s beauty

The Chandigarh Administration should demolish illegal constructions outside lal dora. Chandigarh is known for being a well-planned city. The Administration should upgrade villages for the betterment of rural people and maintain the character of the city. A committee should be set up to keep a vigil on illegal construction that hampers the growth of the city.

Abhilasha Gupta, Mohali

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