CUTTACK: Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) will start issuing building plan approvals from September 1. Apart from that, the civic body will also carry out the eviction of unauthorised constructions (UCs), provide layout designs for plotting of land and approve land partitions.
The Housing and Urban Development (H&UD) Department issued a letter to CMC directing its Commissioner to make necessary arrangements for opening and functioning of a separate, full-fledged planning section at the CMC office by August end.
Earlier, Cuttack Development Authority (CDA) had been issuing building plan approvals for all construction activities in the city. But the State Government, in 2016, had approved the transfer of responsibility from the development authority to the corporation by making an amendment to the law.
Acting on the earlier direction of H&UD Department, CMC in 2017 had initiated the setting up of a planning cell at its extension office in Bikash Bhawan along with the appointment of a city planning officer to issue the approval plans in areas located within its limits. However, after functioning for a few days, the planning cell had a shutdown.
Sources said though Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) had succeeded in issuing building plan approvals, CMC was unable to take up the work due to lack of infrastructure.
Citizens, however, are in doubt over the implementation of the direction. “We are in a dilemma as to whether the order of H&UD department will be carried out by the civic body this time or a situation like the previous time will reoccur,” said Chitta Ranjan Swain, a resident of Jobra locality.