Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Better enforcement is the best remedy

The increasing number of commercial buildings and apartments has had a huge impact on the environment. Hence, strict measures as proposed in the new Act are actually good and much needed. But authorities must make sure that people who have unknowingly bought apartments in the so-called illegal areas should not suffer.

Mukesh M. Abraham

Kundara

The pressure on living space is directly proportional to the demographic increment, causing ubiquitous growth of unauthorised constructions in towns and cities.

Suitable legislations help curb this mischief. The amendment to the Kerala Muncipal Building Rules is therefore a welcome measure. Nevertheless, the rules per se are of limited help. Their scrupulous enforcement is more important. It is here exactly that the machinery fails. Partisan politics, corruption, favouritism and the like should not deter the enforcement authorities from implementing the rules.

What is described above is an immediate measure. Inevitably, a burgeoning population entails the construction of more flats. But, unbridled construction gives rise to environmental issues. Therefore, stress should be placed on population regulation. We have to modify the Gandhian concept of rural development to suit modern demands. Provide Urban facilities in Rural Areas (PURA), the pet project of Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, our former President, is a laudable measure to prevent the flow of humanity to the cities. This will go a long way in reducing the necessity of flat construction in cities.

N. Sadasivan Pillai

By e-mail

Regulation is all the more important with the ever-increasing demand for housing, so that the common house-seeker is not taken for a ride by unscrupulous fly-by-night operators.

An independent regulatory authority consisting of eminent architects, civil engineers, fire engineers, environmentalists, town planners and jurists may be set up and all new flats brought under its jurisdiction for approval of plans, ensuring adherence to plans, security aspects, environmental safeguards and legal aspects. Antecedents and credibility of builders should be verified by the authority before grant of approval. Regulation will scare away many builders, but it will ensure quality houses.

While granting approval for flats it must be ensured that all necessary safeguards are provided for and that they are self-sufficient in parking and waste disposal, so that they do not further strain the already fragile infrastructure.

George Thomas

Thiruvananthapuram

Flats are mushrooming throughout the State, stimulated by scarcity of developed land, though the practice is contrary to Kerala’s culture and preference for scattered living. We need about 10 lakh houses in the next 5 years to meet the quantitative and qualitative shortages. Of these 90% to 95% are for income groups who cannot afford multi-storied flats which are five times costlier than conventional load-bearing constructions till three or four floors. The notion that flats are solutions to counter shortage of land is a myth. Higher densities are possible with low-rise development adopting economic usage of land and good planning.

The existing building rules are inadequate to counter the problems even if they are fully fulfilled by builders. For example the rules prescribe one parking for 8 units when even the smallest flat owner owns a car nowadays.

Same is the case with the high Floor Area Ratio (FAR) of 4.

The major revisions immediately required to meet the present conditions are: minimum 50 cents area of plot, FAR not more than two, 60% coverage, one parking space for every flat and 6 meters as minimum width of access road.

K. Thomas Poulose

Thiruvananthapuram

The development strategy for an area is defined by its FAR or Floor Area Ratio. The government is supposed to provide the infrastructure demanded by the FAR. The Kerala Municipal Building Rules define the FAR for apartment buildings as a maximum of 3, i.e. you can build a maximum floor area of three time the plot area. Whether this is logical is something that has to be debated.

Only small amendments and updating is required for the building rules and the thrust should be on avoiding all kinds of violations.

For example, there is a rule in the Kerala Municipal Building Rules which states that “sufficient land shall be kept unpaved or sufficient opening shall be provided in the land to allow percolation of rain water in the plot itself and rain water from a plot shall be connected with public drainage system only in the case of plots with impermeable soil,” which is a very relevant one considering the flooding problem. But the rule is never enforced.

Binu Mangal

Thiruvananthapuram

Reports appear in the media from time to time about the large-scale violation of rules or regulations governing an industrial or social activity in the State, to which the authorities concerned react by stating that the rules will be amended to pre-empt such violations.

There is an inherent fallacy in this approach. First of all, one should see why the existing rules have been bypassed or violated.

If it turns out that the violators have been taking advantage of the loopholes in the rules, then amending them to remove these loopholes would be wise. But many a time rules are violated not because of their inherent weaknesses but because of lackadaisical, haphazard enforcement. Frequent amendments for ad hoc improvements only lead to confusion, poor compliance and low enforceability.

B.K.S. Nair

Thiruvananthapuram

Is the government justified in tightening the regulations for construction of flats? Yes, if the intention is to protect the environment, prevent exploitation of workers and violation of building rules. No, if the aim is to impose sweeping restrictions to thwart the growth of the industry as a whole on the misconceived notion that apartments are elitist phenomena which pamper the spending power of the rich and wealthy and make unsustainable demands on the scarce resources of the cities.

One of the ironies of the Indian administration is that overzealous regulation often harms the very sections for whose benefit the governments purportedly frame stricter rules.

The construction industry is a growth driver and provides employment opportunities to thousands of workers across many segments of the society.

In fact, it makes eminent sense to go vertical in a land scarce State like Kerala. The government can make a perceptible impact in solving the acute shortage of housing units by encouraging construction of low-cost apartment complexes in suburban areas by extending suitable incentives to builders and by making suitable policy changes. This will help to make flats more affordable and also help decongest overcrowded cities.

V.N. Mukundarajan

Thiruvananthapuram

Growing demand for housing can be faced even with strict regulations because of the immense competition in this field. Wherever we look there are buildings. But are they authorised? Do they stick to regulations? Do they provide necessary parking lots? Have the safety requirements been met? The infrastructure sector benefited the most from the IT boom, but unauthorised buildings are also coming up side by side. Amending rules and implementing them will ensure quality buildings in the city, raising the standard of living of the people.

Ajith V. Pillai

By e-mail

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