CHENNAI: One institute in Tamil Nadu may soon be designated as Centre of Excellence, along with four other institutions from across the country, in developing India-specific knowledge in urban planning and design as per the announcement made by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget speech on Tuesday.
The centres, which will deliver certified training in India-specific knowledge in urban planning, will get an endowment fund of Rs 250 crore each. "The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) will take the lead in improving syllabi, quality and access of urban planning courses in other institutions," the FM said while presenting the Union Budget 2022 in Parliament on Tuesday. Official sources told The New Indian Express that the State is likely to get one Centre of Excellence but refused to divulge more details.
A Government Order may soon be issued, sources said. In a related development, the state is also reviewing the Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules (TNCBDR, 2019).
The rules were framed by a technical committee based on the Model Building ByLaws 2016 of Government of India, National Building Code, 2016, National Urban Transit Oriented Development Policy, Ease of Doing Business requirements, the United Nations' New Urban Agenda 2016, and India Infrastructure Report, 2018.
The Finance Minister has also said that support will be provided to states for urban capacity building, including modernization of building bylaws, Town Planning Schemes (TPS), and Transit Oriented Development (TOD). "The TNCBDR review process has started and terms of reference have been issued. The State is also planning to amend the Town and Country Planning Act," an official told The New Indian Express.
Former Anna University professor KP Subramanian said that there is a need to simplify building rules with adequate participatory approach. The government may even exempt individual houses built for self-use from planning permissions/building licence, he said.
The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs formulated a framework for preparing TPS through pilot schemes in select Indian cities in 2018. Chennai is one such city and the CMDA is the nodal agency. The CMDA has identified 'Agaram Then' village in the St. Thomas Mount Panchayat Union for the pilot and the planning process is on.
"The basic idea of TPS is to pool all land parcels ranging from 100 to 200 hectares and to reconvey the reconstituted plots to original owners after deducting the land required for developing community facilities. The CMDA has prepared about 60 DDPs. The schemes, however, couldn't be implemented because of troubles in land acquisition and financial problems," the former professor said.
A top official said to ensure optimum utilization of land, right mix of uses and improve liveability along the corridors of mass transit, the State will be looking to implement transit oriented development along Anna Salai and Poonamallee High Road.
Six corridors for densification under Transit Order Development (TOD) as proposed by Comprehensive Mobility Plan which is being prepared include Old Siruseri Road (Sholinganallur Road), GST Road (Meenambakkam Road), Chennai-Bangalore Highway, CTH Road, GNT Road, and Outer Ring Road from Vandalur to Minjur.
TOD is focused around a Mass Transit Hub (MTH) to usher in inclusive development that maximises provisions for residential, economic, and recreational activities within walking distance. It aims to promote use of public transport by reducing dependency on private vehicles and ensure sustainable urban growth.