VIJAYAWADA: Underscoring that the State government is against unauthorised constructions and layouts, Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD) Minister Botcha Satyanarayana has said that it will not proceed with Building Penalisation Scheme (BPS) in the next five years. He also added that his department was working to prepare a master plan for the entire State by April, 2020.
Speaking at the ‘stakeholders workshop on real estate issues’ organised here on Friday, the minister noted that the fees collected by the government was not for income generation, but for running the department. After representatives from realty asked about the implementation of the BPS, the minister said, “It is fine to implement BPS once. When there are any deviations, there should be a rectification mechanism. But, it shouldn’t become a habit as it would encourage more deviations in construction. Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy is also of the same view. So, don’t expect BPS to be rolled out in the next five years. This year’s was the last.”
Botcha added that the government was also serious regarding unauthorised layouts. “The Chief Minister has also discussed the issue as there are several unauthorised layouts in the State. We are in the process of streamlining it and will take a call on it soon,” he explained.
Elaborating on the department’s plan for development, he said that master plan of entire urban areas in the State would be done by March next year. He acknowledged the issues related to the sand policy, but assured the builders that action was being taken to resolve them. “There will be teething issues when we roll out a new policy. There was flooding in the sand reaches. Especially in Visakhapatnam, there are no reaches, and sand has to be sourced from other north coastal districts. We have planned how to overcome it,” he explained.
Before the minister addressed the gathering, the members from real estate sector gave a representation on 26 issues including sand, vacant lands, payment system, BPS and RERA Act. Botcha said that the department would try to resolve the issues through dialogue. He emphasised that the government was trying to make all the sectors in AP as role model for other States. “Real estate is an important one among them,” he stated.
Naidu politicising every issue: Minister
Reacting to the allegations of TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, Satyanarayana found fault with the former Chief Minister for politicising every issue. “We don’t support any social media posts which attack anybody. But, Naidu has to remember how he dealt with the same or how his language was when he was the CM. We condemn the posts, but it is also unfortunate that the Opposition Leader is politicising every issue,” he said, on the sidelines of an event on Friday. He refuted Naidu’s charges that the police were not taking any action against derogatory posts on social media.