Maha govt unlocks agri land for industry, edu institutes

Maha govt unlocks agri land for industry, edu institutes

FSI Hiked By 9 Times, But Capped At 1

The state government has amended its land laws to unlock agricultural land for industry as well as public educational and medical institutes. The decision is aimed at promoting the ease of doing business under the `Make in Maharashtra' policy .

Under the changed rules, industrial units will be allowed to exploit up to nine times the existing building rights on agricultural land. Medical and educational institutes run by the state or public charitable trusts will be able to build up to four times the existing building rights on these lands.

However, the building rig hts have been capped at a maximum of 1 FSI which will essentially allow a ground plus onestorey structure, officials said.The additional building rights will be made available on the payment of a premium of 30% of the land rate. Officials said the changed rules will boost industri al growth on the outskirts of cities.

“This will help promote the dispersal and expansion of industry . It will be especially beneficial for smalland mediumscale industries since they can be set up at convenient locations instead of MIDC zones,“ said urban development secretary Nitin Kareer. “Building rights have not been increased to a great extent for industry . Most units in such locations tend to be industrial sheds.“

Activists are unhappy with the move. “This will have a drastic effect. These are no-development zones. Now they will be exposed to poor-quality urbanization. There should be a much more calibrated approach,“ said Pankaj Joshi of the Urban Design Research Institute. The institute had registered its objections to the move with the government.

Before the rules were changed, agricultural land was classified as no-development zone with restricted building rights, ranging from FSI 0.1 to 0.2. Though FSI has been increased, the quantum will depend on the width of a plot's adjoining road.

The amended rules will apply to areas including MMR, Pune, Nagpur, Nasik, Raigad, Aurangabad, Ahmednagar, Sangli, Jalgaon and Amravati.

Source | Times of India | 13 June 2015