In a major boost for real estate in the Capital, projects that are being developed on plots sized up to 1,50,000 sq. metres will not have to get added approval from the Union Environment Ministry prior to commencing construction any more. Developers earlier had to contend with huge delays with regard to obtaining environmental clearance and it often took more than a couple of years to get clearances, thereby leading to a major increase in project costs.
In case of smaller projects, which are less than 20, 000 sq. metres, developers will have to provide their self-declaration clause, which will guarantee the issuing of permission from ULBs (urban local bodies). In case of bigger projects up to 1.5 lakh sq. ft, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and the three municipal corporations present in the Capital have to provide environmental clearance along with granting the construction permits.
The environment condition needed has now been integrated with the Capital’s building byelaws. According to the Union Urban Development Minister, M Venkaiah Naidu, this new decision is the result of several efforts made by the Government for more than a year and should definitely boost the ease of doing business in the Capital along with fast tracking the completion of new projects.
The Doing Business Report for 2017 by the World Bank found out that India has one of the most stringent and lengthy procedures when it comes to obtaining approval for construction permits. India ranked a poor 185 out of 190 countries in the list. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has also issued its own notification to this effect.
