Building plan: new rules from September 15

Building plan: new rules from September 15

The Hindu

BMP officials will inspect construction work at three stages to prevent violations

# Applicants will have to submit affidavit and architect certificate
# They should inform jurisdictional engineers before starting work
# Engineers will inspect work and maintain a record of it
# Occupancy certificate will be issued only after work is completed

BANGALORE: The Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) officials will henceforth inspect a new building three times during its construction to ensure that the builder does not deviate from the sanctioned plan.

The owner will have to compulsorily obtain an occupancy certificate after the construction is completed. These new rules are likely to be implemented from September 15.

Though the BMP Commissioner, K. Jothiramalingam, initially wanted to issue a "provisional sanction" for a new building plan, the idea was dropped at a high-level meeting of top officials here on Wednesday.

"This is because we will have to issue a final sanction after the construction is completed. The Karnataka Municipal Corporations (KMC) Act does not permit us to do this. Besides, such a proposal may encourage corruption and result in harassment of the public," sources in the BMP's Town Planning Department told The Hindu on Thursday.

Under the new rules, the BMP will ensure that the plan is sanctioned within 24 hours.

"At Wednesday's meeting, the officials were asked to suggest modifications to the draft proposal. The idea is to check deviation and violation of building bylaws during the construction itself," the sources said.

As per the new rules, the applicant will have to submit a certificate from his architect and an affidavit while applying for a building plan sanction.

"The architect should certify that the plan has been prepared in compliance with the zoning regulations and building bylaws. The owner should vouch in the affidavit that he will not deviate from the sanctioned plan," the sources said.

The owners will have to inform the jurisdictional BMP engineers before starting the construction. The area executive engineer and assistance executive engineer will inspect the construction on three occasions — first when the building reaches the plinth level, then when work reaches the lintel level and finally, after the construction is completed.

"The engineers will maintain a register in every sub-division to keep a record of the inspections. They will attest the sanctioned plan after every inspection and make an entry in the register.

"At the final stage, an occupancy certificate will be issued only if it is found that the builder has not deviated from the sanctioned plan," the sources said.

At present, the officials are not strictly following the system of inspecting a building during the construction.

"It is of no use if the deviations are detected after the construction is completed," the sources added.