State Govt notifies Unified Devpt Control & Promotion Regulations
| Date :06-Dec-2020 |
Staff Reporter :
Change of use allowed in case of open land of closed industrial unit in industrial zone or industrial plots leased out by NIT, NMC
After much deliberation and careful perusal of the report of the committee appointed for the purpose, Urban Development Department of Maharashtra Government has finally notified the Unified Development Control and Promotion Regulations (UDCPR). The need for UDCPR arose due to difference in existing regulations for various planning authorities, municipal corporations/councils, Nagar Panchayats metropolitan region development authorities.
The UDCPR is applicable to all planning authorities and regional plan areas except Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai and planning authorities/special planning authorities/ development authorities within its limit, Maharashtra Indudtrial Development Corporation, NAINA, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, Hill Station Municipal Councils, eco-sensitives/eco-fragile region notified by Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, and Lonavala Municipal Council. The 397-page extensive UDCPR was notified on December 2 and signed by Kishor Gokhale, Under Secretary, Government of Maharashtra; and N R Shende, Joint Secretary and Director of Town Planning, Government of Maharashtra. As far as Nagpur is concerned, change of use has been allowed in case of open land(s) of closed industrial unit(s) in industrial zone or industrial plots leased out by Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT) or Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC). Earlier, experts say, change of use was not allowed.
As per the UDCPR, any open land/s of closed industrial unit/s in industrial zone ‘may be permitted to be utilised for all the users permissible in the Residential zone’ with permissible Floor Space Index (FSI) in the zone. However, it will be subject to payment of premium, which will be equal to 15 per cent of the rate of developed land as per the Annual Statement of Rates (ASR). In case of industrial plots leased out by NIT, NMC, or planning authority, FSI of 2.5 and 2 are allowed for purely commercial use and mixed use respectively. It, too, shall be subject to payment of premium at the rate of 15 per cent for Residential and 20 per cent for Commercial use. As far as plots admeasuring 1,000 sq mtr and above in Residential zone are concerned, basic FSI shall be 1.25 in congested as well as non-congested area, irrespective of road width. In case of buildings in Commercial zone, FSI for buildings in non-congested area shall be 2 for commercial-cum-residential use or purely residential use.
FSI for such buildings in non-congested area shall be 2.5 for purely commercial use. In case of congested area in Commercial zone, the permissible FSI shall be 1.5 for commercial use of plots fronting the road 9 mtr in width, and 2 for plots fronting the road 9 mtr or more in width. As far as Nagpur Metropolitan Region Development Authority (NMRDA) area is concerned, the UDCPR has provisions relating to development along Ring Road, special reglations for Improvement Schemes. Under the development along Ring Road, UDCPR allows 250 metre residential zone/belt along 60 metre wide Outer Ring Road as corridor development, subject to payment of premium. The development in this 250 metre corridor is permitted on payment of premium ‘as decided by the Government on the total area of land under development or building permission’.
The Improvement Schemes by public participation sanctioned by the Government under the provisions of Nagpur Improvement Act, 1936, and which come under the jurisdiction of Nagpur Metropolitan Area ‘shall be valid and continue to be valid’. Under the special regulations for Improvement Schemes, any changes in the details of layout or in the master plan shall be carried out by the Metropolitan Commissioner at his/her own level. “However, the public amenity/public utility areas and their percentage as per original sanction shall not be changed while making modifications/amendments in the schemes,” state the UDCPR. There are several other provisions relating to development, redevelopment, slum rehabilitation, heritage conservation, margins, FSI, transfer of development rights etc for various cities in the UDCPR.
Nagpur Metro Rail Corridor: Max permissible FSI to be 4, but... The UDCPR has specific provisions for Nagpur Metro Rail Corridor (NMRC) under the head of transit-oriented development, which has been a contentious issue. As per the UDCPR, the maximum permissible total FSI in NMRC shall be 4 including the basic permissible FSI. But, this FSI of 4 shall be subject to condition that the maximum permissible FSI shall be determined if both criteria are met -- minimum road width as well as plot area. If both the criteria are not met simultaneously, the maximum permissible FSI shall be minimum of that permissible against each of the two criteria. A formula has been prescribed in this regard.
As per the formula, if minimum road width is 9 metre and plot area is below 1,000 sq mtr, the maximum permissible FSI shall be 2. The FSI of 4 shall be permissible only if the minimum road width is 15 metres and the plot area is 2,000 sq mtr or above. Besides, land owner/ developer shall not have option to use transferable development rights or TDR in NMRC. The maximum permissible FSI shall be calculated on the gross plot area. The additional FSI over and above the base permissible FSI shall be granted by Municipal Commissioner or Chairperson of NIT or any planning authority through whose area metro rail passes. But, it will be granted only “after taking into account the impact assessment of the implementation of these regulations regarding the impact on city and sector-level infrastructure and amenities as well as traffic and environment on NMRC.”
The impact assessment in such cases should also contain measures to be undertaken to mitigate likely impact of such permission, and also the action plan for implementation of such measures in time-bound manner. It should also contain integrated mobility plan ‘envisaging therein inter-linkages between different modes of mass transport, parking management, traffic management, and pedestrianisation’. For the sake of reference, UDCPR defines NMRC as area falling within 500 metres distance on either side of Nagpur Metro Rail, measured from its centre-line. It also includes area falling within 500 metres distance from the longitudinal end of the last metro railway station. Besides, the UDCPR is applicable for ‘all the planning authorities the metro rail is passing through’.