Amid poll, Saini govt lifts embargo on stilt+4 floors
The Haryana Town and Country Planning Department today withdrew the embargo on stilt-plus-four-floor (S+4) approvals.
In a letter to the Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran, the Housing Board, the Director, Urban Local Bodies, and the Haryana State Infrastructure and Industrial Development Corporation, senior town planner Hitesh Sharma said the embargo had been lifted.
He requested the authorities to take further action as per the instructions issued on July 2 regarding the guidelines on allowing S+4 floors.
He said during arguments in the Punjab and Haryana High Court in the Gurgaon Citizen Council vs state of Haryana and others case, in which the state policy on allowing S+4 floors was challenged, Additional Advocate General Ankur Mittal had assured the court on August 6 that the approvals “shall be kept on hold till the next date of hearing for filing of reply” by the Town and Country Planning Department.
The next date of hearing was August 22. Sharma stated in the letter that the reply of the department was filed on August 21, and, therefore, the assurance given by the Additional AG “to keep the approvals of S+4 floors on hold till the filing of the reply stands fulfilled”. “It is accordingly informed that the embargo on S+4 approvals, as conveyed vide directions issued on August 6, is hereby withdrawn,” Sharma said.
The embargo has been removed at a time when campaigning is in full swing in the state for the October 5 Assembly poll.
On July 2, the department had announced the benefits of S+4 floors for approximately 1.68 lakh plot owners across Haryana. These owners, whose layout plans originally allowed for three floors and who had access to the residential plots through 10 m or wider roads, are eligible for S+4 floors, albeit with certain conditions.
The owners have to submit a no-objection certificate from the adjoining plot owners. If the neighbours refuse consent, the plot owner must leave a side setback of 1.8 m from the adjoining plots for all floors. The adjoining plot owners who refuse to grant consent will be ineligible for S+4 approvals on their plots in future.
For plots allowed for S+4 floors, construction of a basement storey is prohibited if the area is less than 250 sq m. For an area greater than 250 sq m, the basement storey is allowed with consent from the neighbours.
Residential plots in colonies/sectors, with approved layout plans allowing four dwelling units per plot, can have S+4 floors without conditions. Similarly, in the Deen Dyal Jan Awas Yojna colonies, S+4 floors are allowed without conditions if the service plan is revised for four dwelling units per plot.
