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Higher Floor Area Ratio (FAR) under Delhis proposed new Master Plan could make the redevelopment of ageing buildings financially viable, says D Thara, Secretary, Department of Capital Development, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, in the wake of the recent collapse of a five-storey paying guest accommodation in Satya Niketan that killed seven people.
Thara said the additional development potential provided under the Master Plan could help property owners meet the cost of demolishing and rebuilding old structures. In the master plan, we have proposed regeneration and redevelopment. We have also given FAR. If the building is old, we need money to demolish it. For that, you need extra FAR. That has been given in the master plan this time, Thara said on the sidelines of the National Conference on Real Estate for Viksit Bharat: Enabling Growth, Investment & Ease of Doing Business, organised by ASSOCHAM. Responding to a question on building collapses and old structures in Delhi, Thara said the Master Plan provides significant scope for regeneration and redevelopment. Most of these old buildings are 1.5 FAR. If we demolish it, they will get 50 per cent more, she said. She said the additional FAR would provide greater development potential to old properties and help address the financial burden involved in demolishing and rebuilding ageing structures. I cannot give a response to the city level issues here. I am talking from the government of India. But, for regeneration and redevelopment, we have given a lot of scope this time, she said. Thara also outlined the scale of future housing and urban development envisaged for Delhi, saying up to 40 lakh new homes could come up in the city over the next 20 years. She said around 20,000 hectares along Metro corridors have been identified for high-density development, with the aim of encouraging housing and commercial activity in areas well connected by public transport. We want densities on the metro corridor. We want densities where people dont need to use cars. So, its high time we bring the people to the metro corridors, she said. Thara referred to a survey which, according to her, showed that around 70 per cent of jobs are located around Metro corridors. She also said Delhi has a substantial road network and high road density, and stressed the need to make better use of existing infrastructure. On urban water management, Thara called for a shift in the way cities deal with rainfall and waterlogging, particularly as extreme weather events become more frequent. She advocated the concept of sponge cities, under which urban areas are designed to absorb and retain rainwater rather than allowing large volumes of water to flow rapidly into drainage systems. The new concept is sponge cities. Absorb the water, rather than letting it go, she said. Thara also urged real estate developers and individual property owners to examine construction practices that prevent rainwater from seeping into the ground. When we construct our houses independently also, do we look at what do we do? We lay concrete to stop water (from absorbing in the soil). The water that used to go there, where will it go? she said. On land pooling, Thara said the first scheme had been approved and stressed that building confidence among landowners would be critical for the process to move forward. Land pooling will only move forward when people have faith. This is the first step. The second step is to come together as an association, she said. She said the DDA would need to play a greater role in land aggregation and that a platform was being created to facilitate interaction between individual landowners and the authority. Thara's remarks come as Delhi faces the twin challenges of ensuring the safety of ageing buildings and meeting rising demand for housing and urban infrastructure. The Satya Niketan collapse has added urgency to the debate over redevelopment, building regulation and enforcement, while the government's proposed higher FAR seeks to improve the economic viability of redeveloping older properties. The proposed approach could have wider implications for Delhi's real estate market by creating additional development potential for ageing properties, while also placing greater emphasis on planned redevelopment and compliance with building safety norms. (ANI)
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