Hyderabad: The state government will set up a municipal building tribunal to check unauthorised constructions and resolve town planning issues. The tribunal will be empowered to initiate action against those who construct unauthorised buildings. The orders issued by the tribunal can be challenged only in the HC to avoid litigation. The government will bring all constructions in the city under mortgage and occupancy certificate clause. There will be no relaxation even for constructions on smal plots.
Builders will have to mortgage 10 per cent of the built up area with the GHMC prior to construction. This will be restored only if the builder has complied with the building plan. The tribunal was mooted by the erstwhile Congress government three years ago. The TS government revived the proposal and sent it to the law department which gave its approval for setting up an eight-member tribunal to be headed by a judge of the district court.
The Hyderabad HC had last week directed the state government and GHMC to take immediate steps to constitute a tribunal to deal with the cases of illegal constructions and ensure speedy disposal of cases. It asked the government to consider the suggestion of the GHMC to amend the Municipal Corporation Act by making the illegal construction activity a cognizable offence. A senior MAUD official said, “Action will be initiated against illegal constructions under Sections 452, 455, 636 of the Municipal Act. The tribunal will have a prescribed time limit to dispose of cases.”
Asked about the effectiveness of the mortgage clause, the officer said the clause in its previous form could not check deviations because it gave scope for builders to flout the norm by resorting to sub-division of plots. “If they are constructing a building on a 400-sq.m plot, they divide it into two plots of 200 sq. m each to avail mortgage exemption for smaller plots but take up construction of a single building on the entire plot. The rule will check this violation,” he said.
