CHENNAI: Lack of qualified manpower in local bodies is delaying the delegation of powers to local bodies under the Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019. This has hit around 3,000 projects which are likely to come up, once the State government delegates powers under the new Rules, says Chairman of Builders Association of India, Southern region, KS Ramaprabhu.
Currently, the local bodies are following the old rules wherein approval is given to buildings not above the height of nine metres. “This will not help realise the Floor Space Index of 2. Under the new norms, local bodies will have the power to give nod for a building of stilt plus three floors with a height of 12 metres,” says Ramaprabhu.
He says the registration of developers and engineers has been slow as most of them are still awaiting the delegation of powers to local bodies.However, though delegation of power has not yet been done, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority is processing online applications with a building of height below 12 metres across the Chennai Metropolitan Area limit, sources said.
But then the hitch is the capacity building of local bodies which lack qualified manpower. Sources say that as per the new norms, completion certificate is a must for a building having minimum of three dwelling units. Similarly, a building with eight dwelling units in the State will have to register with the Real Estate Regulatory Authority and this requires qualified manpower or planners.
It is learnt that with lack of qualified manpower, there had been massive violations in the panchayat and local bodies. As a result, the government has stipulated qualification norms leaving out draughtsman and ITI diploma holders being reduced to Grade III. While Prabhu feels that the government should consider them also but sources feel it will compromise on the quality.Interestingly, this comes as registration of developer is mandatory to get a planning approval from the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority, Directorate of Town and Country Planning and other local bodies.
According to S Sridharan, vice-president, Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (CREDAI), apart from developers, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority has made it mandatory to register structural engineers, construction engineers, quality engineers, town planners, architect and engineers. “In a way, this is good. It will bring in some sort of responsibility,” said Sridharan.
While the CMDA has started the process of registration, the Directorate of Town and Country Planning has yet to do so. Sources said that delegation of powers is delaying the registration process and deputation of manpower could help resolve the problem.Former Anna University professor or urban engineering K P Subramanian said that lack of technical manpower to scrutinise plans would hit the development. “This was one of the issue raised by the Institute of Town Planners India (ITPI),” says Subramnanian.
‘Development could be hit’
Former Anna University professor or urban engineering K P Subramanian said that lack of technical manpower to scrutinise plans would hit development