Thiruvananthapuram: The LDF-led Thiruvananthapuram Corporation smells a taint campaign before the elections in the state government’s move issuing an order lifting the freeze on the city’s controversial draft Master Plan.
The order has not been addressed to any official or representative of the civic body. Mayor V K Prashant, at a press conference, said that the state government’s unnecessary haste in reviving the master plan should be viewed with suspicion.
He said that they would be meeting Minister for Urban Affairs Manjalamkuzhi Ali, seeking clarity on the order. Works Standing Committee Chairperson Sreekumar said that the draft plan should be scrapped altogether.
The plan, when it was introduced, had met with opposition as it had earmarked land for various development projects in densely populated areas. Now the order dated February 19, 2016, has revived the plan but also says that land can be allotted for residential spaces, industrial and commercial constructions as well as other permissible projects.
However LSGD – Urban Affairs Secretary A P M Mohammed Hanish said that the order only allowed sanction of building permits in areas where land was not demarcated for any purpose.
“The order is a temporary solution to the situation where building permits were not allowed at all. The draft master plan will still be subject to modifications, after discussions between the state government and the Corporation,” he said.
However the civic body has asked that no building permits be issued, until there is clarity. The LDF feels that this will lead to resentment against the LDF-led Corporation in places like Attipra which voted for the LDF in the local body elections.
They led a march to the Secretariat on Monday evening in protest. The Mayor said that the modified master plan, submitted by the Town Planning Department, while dealing with the most controversial suggestions of the draft plan, was far from perfect. “It has been prepared without a socio-economic survey nor land utilization map,” he said.
