THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Cabinet has decided to relax the rules governing the construction of highrise buildings. From now on, construction of highrises will be on the basis of the Kerala Municipality Building Rules, which does not contain rigid set of norms such as obtaining no objection certificate from the Fire Department.
“The National Building Code of the Centre is only a set of guidelines. It does not overrule the law already enacted by the state legislature,” said an official in the Urban Affairs Department.
The Cabinet took the decision on the basis of the recommendation of a committee headed by the Chief Secretary. Former Fire and Rescue Services chief Jacob Thomas had imposed strict guidelines laid down in the National Building Code while in office. This had led to widespread resentment among builders in the state.