NEW DELHI: The Board of Enquiry and Hearing constituted for considering objections and suggestions for the Master Plan 2021 is in a tearing hurry now. As the Master Plan is already five years late, the Board wants to complete hearings of all the 7,000 suggestions and objections received by DDA by the end of December so that the new Master Plan 2021 may be in place by the end of the current fiscal.

In keeping with the urgency, over 250 petitions were heard by the Board of Enquiry and Hearing constituted for considering objections and suggestions for the Master Plan 2021 at its first meeting held at Paschim Vihar in Outer Delhi on Saturday.

Member of the Delhi Development Authority, Virender Kasana, who was recently nominated and appointed member on the Board, conducted the meeting, which started at 10 a.m. and ran up to 5 in the evening. Lamenting that the Municipal Commissioner of Delhi, whose name had been added to the panel did not attend the meet, he said the DDA Vice-Chairman, Member Engineering and Commissioner Planning were three important officials who were present.

Pointing out that Board was striving to go through all the suggestions and objections by the month end, he said, already about 5,000 cases which were of similar nature have been disposed of. As about 7,000 suggestions had been received by DDA from the public, he said in the next meeting those elected representatives -- Members of Parliament, Legislative Assembly and Councillors -- would be called who had put forth their ideas for change.

As the Master Plan, which is for the period 2001 to 2021, is already five years late and this has brought a bad name to DDA, he said after scrutiny of all the suggestions, the relevant ones shall be put before the Authority and necessary amendments would be drafted. The idea is to have the new Master Plan in place by the end of the current financial year.

As of now, Mr Kasana said most of the suggestions pertained to mixed land use as people want DDA to allow commercial use of residential properties. However, he said, while the draft Master Plan clearly allows for some kinds of commercial activity in residential areas situated on roads having a minimum width of 18 metres, it does not allow same activities on narrower roads as that would lead to congestion and parking problems. Also, hazardous or polluting units will not be allowed in any residential area.

Further, as per the proposals, primary schools, nursing homes, guesthouses and banks will also be allowed in residential areas. Only they can come up on 18 metre or wider roads and on plots that are over 209 square metres in size. Likewise, for banquet halls the minimum size has been put at 333 square metres.

The proposals also allow for professional activity in residential areas by doctors, lawyers and architects.

Stating that regularisation of all such commercial units in residential areas would benefit close to 5 lakh people in the Capital, Mr Kasana said in Old Delhi the minimum width of the roads for all these commercial purposes has been kept at 9 metres. He said efforts are also on to obtain permission for grocery shops on narrower roads.

But while calling for certain relaxations in the proposals, the new Member of the Board said all efforts would be made to ensure that the new Master Plan does not remain in books alone.

"We want to implement it thoroughly while serving the larger public interest. Also, we want responsibility of the DDA staff to be fixed so that in case of any violation of norms the guilty officials can be dealt with sternly.''

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