BMC could give licences to builders
The civic body wants them to register with it, so they can be held accountable in case anything goes wrong with the construction …..GEETA DESAI
After the Laxmi Chhaya building and Govind Tower collapse tragedies, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has formulated new additional bylaws according to which all residential property developers will have to register themselves with the civic body and get licences to take up construction work.
A BMC official said the civic body has forwarded a proposal for the additional by-laws to the Law, Revenue and General Purpose Committee for the sanction. The nitty-gritty of the norms and the regulations are presently being worked out to enact the law. We have also sent the request to the state governments Law and Judiciary department for amendment in a section of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act 1888, he said.
Developers will get the licence only if they satisfy the norms laid by the corporation. Apart from structural audit, securing stability of the buildings and interior repairs, registration of the developers and issuing them the licenses is the most important point the BMCs Development Plan (DP) department is stressing upon.
The BMC will prepare a set of forms for the developers, which they have to fill in while applying for the registration and acquisition of the licence. They will have to comply with prescribed norms, which will be mandatory for all those who want to take up construction activity, said the official. They will have to have certain background, a qualified team (architects, engineers etc), information of the equipment and the material they are going to use in the construction, along with the plan, added the officer.
The commissioner or an officer of the BMC appointed by the commissioner will be the licensing authority. Developers also have to furnish all the necessary documents required by the BMC from time to time. Each licence will be valid for three years, after which it will have to be renewed.
We had to take a stand somewhere. This will atleast make developers accountable, said A T Shintre, chief engineer DP. Presently, architects submit their plans to the corporation and they get it cleared on behalf of the developers. If anything goes wrong, developers get scotfree and they are virtually out of the BMCs reach. This new law once enacted will make developers responsible for their construction work. he added.
Builders will have to comply with prescribed norms