AP Cuts Building File Checks to Three Levels To Speed Up OCs

 VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh government has introduced a uniform three-level system for supervisory checks of buildings and processing of Occupancy Certificates (OCs), aimed at reducing delays, fixing accountability and speeding up services without diluting regulatory oversight.

The Municipal Administration and Urban Development department said the system would apply to Nagar Panchayats, municipalities, municipal corporations and urban development authorities across the state. Building files will now pass through Level-1 and Level-2 scrutiny before being confirmed at Level-3.

The move follows the government’s finding that files under the existing system were being routed through multiple tiers of town planning officials based on site area, leading to delays in inspections and issuance of OCs.

Municipal administration and urban development minister P. Narayana said the reform would simplify procedures and make urban administration more efficient, transparent and citizen-oriented. “The objective is to simplify the process and remove avoidable procedural delays without compromising regulatory scrutiny,” he said.

Under the revised mechanism, for buildings or sites up to 100 square metres, the Ward Planning and Regulatory Secretary will be at Level-1, the Town Planning Building Overseer or Town Planning Supervisor at Level-2, and the Town Planning Officer or Junior Planning Officer will be the confirming authority at Level-3.

For sites above 100 and up to 200 square metres, the Town Planning Officer will be at Level-2 and the Assistant City Planner or Assistant Planning Officer will confirm the file. For sites above 200 and up to 300 square metres, the Assistant City Planner will be at Level-2 and the Deputy City Planner or Deputy Planning Officer will be the confirming authority.

For sites above 300 and up to 500 square metres, the Deputy City Planner will be at Level-2 and the City Planner or Planning Officer will confirm the file. For sites above 500 and up to 4,000 square metres, excluding high-rise buildings, the City Planner will scrutinise the file at Level-2 and the Chief City Planner or Chief Planning Officer will be the confirming authority.

For sites above 4,000 square metres, excluding high-rise buildings, the Chief City Planner will scrutinise the file at Level-2, while the Commissioner, Vice-Chairperson or Metropolitan Commissioner will be the confirming authority.

The same three-level structure will apply to OC processing for the respective site-area categories. Where a prescribed cadre post is unavailable, the next higher-level officer will exercise the powers.

Principal secretary, municipal administration and urban development, S. Suresh Kumar, said the common mechanism would balance speed, accountability and supervisory rigour. He said it would enable field-level authorities to follow a uniform procedure and ensure post-approval inspections and OCs within the prescribed timelines.

The reform follows the earlier delegation of powers for building post-approval processes and OCs based on site-area categories, and the delegation of development authority powers to Urban Local Bodies and gram panchayats within their jurisdictions.