HP govt to table bill for regularisation of buildings in budget session

Shimla: The state government plans to table a bill for regularisation of illegal buildings, which is awaiting the National Green Tribunal's nod, in budget session of Himachal Pradesh Assembly next year, Urban Development Minister Sudhir Sharma said on Wednesday.

"The government will bring the retention policy in the budget session as we have to wait for the NGT's nod on this," Sharma said.

Sharma added the bill will be tabled in the Assembly in winter session this year if NGT gives a green signal for the regularisation of buildings in green belt in Shimla.

The Town and Country Planning (Amendment) Bill allows for the regularisation of buildings which have been constructed in violation of the Forest Conservation Act and Town and Country Planning Act.

The government had introduced a Bill for regularisation during budget session last year but the same was withdrawn. Later an ordinance was promulgated which was too withdrawn this September.

People who carried out construction illegally after September, when the government had promulgated the ordinance, will not be given relief in the upcoming Bill. But there is no clarity about the fate of illegal buildings constructed between last budget session and the date when the ordinance was withdrawn.

Sharma said there were around 200 plot owners in the green belt in Shimla, adding, "Some of them had received permission for construction in the past, but others were left out. The government wants to give relief to the owners of sandwiched plots in green area and we proposed to include larger area in the green belt later."

He said the government also proposes to bring down the fee for regularising violations considerably in the new retention policy.