Chief Secretary draws attention to building permit disparity
A report filed by Chief Secretary E K Bharat Bhushan on a controversial multistory residential riverside building project by DLF has asked for a clarification from the Cochin Corporation on the issue of building permits. The state government had earlier quashed the environmental clearance provided to DLF Riverside on June 18th.
The report by the Chief Secretary has outlined how the construction is illegal, drawing attention to two important facts – A formal CRZ clearance as mandated under the CRZ notification of 1991/2011 has not been issued either by KCZMA (Kerala Coastal Zone Management Authority) or by MoEF (Ministry of Environment and Forests) till date for the project; there is also no clarity on the FAR (Floor Area Ratio) records provided by the proponent and construction with a higher FAR, which is in violation of the CRZ notifications.
Mercy Williams, who was Kochi mayor in 2008, avoided having anything to do with the controversy, stating, “we don’t look into building permit applications”. However, a senior official with the corporation’s town planning department has declared the unavailability of equipment to check whether land is reclaimed or not, and the reliance on certificates and reports from other governments.
KCZMA had earlier sent a stop memo to the builders, asking the Kochi corporation to execute the same. However, the memo was later withdrawn.
Source: The Times of India
Ministry of environment & forest (MoEF), Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), MoEF, project by DLF, Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF)
