6 times city tuesday, october 21, 2014 layer by layer
TRANSCRIPT
THE TIMES OF INDIA, NEW DELHITUESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 20146 TIMES CITY
New Delhi: Having missedfive deadlines Master PlanDelhi 2021 is inching closer toits final notification. Withseveral changes to the exist-ing draft along with new pro-posals, officials say the mas-ter plan is developing intoone geared towards afforda-ble housing.
Two chapters still to be notified are transportationand environment. While thechapter on environment issaid to be in its final stagesand about to be sent for finalnotification after public feed-back, the chapter on trans-portation is being reviewedby an expert panel. The wholeprocess is expected to bewrapped up within threemonths’ time.
The new master plan willoffer 15% extra floor-area ra-tio (FAR) to group housing so-cieties as an incentive to de-velop flats for economicallyweaker sections. This will beover the 400 FAR offered tothese societies. The develop-ers choosing to build flats onthe over 22,000 hectares ofpooled land can put the sur-plus land, afforded by the ex-tra FAR, to commercial usebut only after providing EWShousing,” said Balvinder Ku-mar, vice-chairman, DDA.
Incentives in the form ofadditional FAR will also beused to transform existingcommercial and residentialspaces. According to the newmaster plan, if market associ-ations or group housing so-cieties agree to demolish andredevelop their properties inline with the new norms, theywill be allowed 1.5 times theexisting FAR.
The master plan will also
provide benefits to those who live or work out of eco-friendly buildings. The pro-posal brought in by DDA willallow 1% to 5% of additionalFAR to structures that adhereto the green building norms,based on the ratings given tothem by certified agencies.“There are several known or-ganizations that certify andrate the ‘greenness’ or envi-ronment-friendliness ofbuildings. The applicants canshow us the ratings and earnthe extra FAR,” said a seniorDDA official.
Another measure to pre-serve environment will be the creation of natural con-servation zones. The majorgreen spaces in Delhi, includ-ing biodiversity parks, re-gional parks and ridge area,will be part of NCZs. “The Na-tional Capital Region plan-ning board had already con-ceived of this and we thought
of incorporating it in ourdraft plans. Through this pol-icy we will also contain theconstruction activity in thearea. Construction in only0.5% of these areas will be al-lowed,” added the senior au-thority official.
MPD 2021 was first noti-fied in February 2007 afterwhich it is supposed to be re-viewed every five years com-prehensively and every twoyears in the form of a mid-term review.
After a review in 2012,DDA is right now working ona mid-term review of theplan. Around 120 modifica-tions are estimated to havebeen made to the existingmaster plan. A new chapteron transit-oriented develop-ment is being added to the existing draft and the chapteron environment, introducedfor the first time, is being finalized.
Much-Delayed Plan Could Be Ready In 3 Mths
LATEST FEATURES➤ Additional 15% floor area ratio (FAR) on group housing societies for the economically weaker section ➤ 1.5 times FAR for commercial or residential establishments redeveloped on new building norms➤ 1 to 5% additional FAR for ‘green’ buildings to promote eco-friendly technology
➤ Creation of a natural conservation zone to protect Delhi’s green areas; 0.5% construction cap on such areas
NEW PROVISIONS
DEADLINES MISSED➤ July 2013, December 2013, January 14, March 14 and September 14, 2014➤ Likely timeframe to notify the remaining chapters of MPD | 3 months
MPD 2021 was first notified in 2007 | Review started in 2012
Affordable housingfocus of master [email protected]
New Delhi: Now being refur-bished, Seth Ram Lal KhemkaHaveli was listed as a Grade-IIheritage building by Delhigovernment in 2010. Thatmade it mandatory that theoriginal contours cannot bealtered. The same year, the Ar-chaeological Survey of Indiamade it a rule that prior per-mission was mandatory forany work within 300 metres ofa protected monument. Thehaveli was 292 metres fromKashmere Gate.
“There were no maps ofthe building. So we studiedand mapped the entire placeand took permission fromboth ASI and Heritage Con-servation Committee of Delhigovernment. All clearancestook about a year to come andwe began our work in Novem-ber 2013 only,” Tipnis said.
The idea was to provide allmodern amenities like airconditioners, modular kitch-ens and western-style toiletswithout altering the heritagelook and feel of the building.But it wasn’t easy to find con-struction workers trained inheritage conservation.
“We visited different heri-tage sites where conservationwork has been on and learntfrom the teams there to con-serve heritage. We thentrained our own team of la-bourers,” Tipnis said.
Training was only the firstpart of the challenge; therewere many other wrongs inthe haveli that had to be maderight. “We scraped off the dif-ferent layers of cement plas-ter. There was water seepageon the walls, cracks and swell-ing on the floor. When we exca-vated the ground floor, wefound both modular bricksused during the Raj as well aslakhori and nanakshahibricks used in Mughal times.We put back the original limemortar used in all buildingsof the time. That made a dif-ference immediately: we’ve
had no water seepage eversince,” Tipnis added.
The next big challengewas to find somebody whocould make Victorian tiles.“We took samples from RaiChunnamal Haveli (in Chand-ni Chowk) and went aboutfinding a vendor. After an al-
to set an example for others toemulate. There are still hun-dreds of havelis here that arepretty much alive—there arepeople living in them. Withsome investment, the ownerscan actually do great serviceto themselves as well as theirinherited legacy. Convertingsuch buildings into museumsisn’t always the best ap-proach,” Tipnis said.
The work will take fourmore months to complete. Butthe Baglas have found one pro-spective bride already.
ki Nandan Bagla, the owner.But despite all this, the to-
tal expenditure incurred ac-tually belies the magnitude ofthe work. “It has cost us Rs 50lakh to restore the ground andmezzanine floors as well asthe facade. For those who canspend, this isn’t a lot of money.Yet if the Baglas had followedwhat many others in theWalled City have done—sell-ing off their ancestral proper-ties and buying flats or kothiselsewhere—they would havemissed out on the opportunity
most frustrating search, wefound a vendor in Greater Noi-da who was willing to experi-ment with something out ofthe ordinary. After some trialand error, we had the perfecttiles for the building. We alsoused steel from our own plant,wherever required,” said Dev-
Layer by layer, haveli becomes homePhotos: Yogesh Kumar
NEW LEASE OF LIFE: The haveli is being restored to its earlier grandeur but will have all the modern comforts, as envisioned by architect Aishwarya Tipnis and owner Devki Nandan Bagla
New Delhi: An assessment of the ex-tent of damage or diversions from satel-lite images and maps prepared by theNational Remote Sensing Centre has re-vealed an “alarming” shrinkage of thenatural conservation zones, the Nation-al Capital Region Planning Board, in itsaffidavit to the National Green Tribu-nal, has said.
The NCR planning borad hasclaimed it has written to state govern-ments several times seeking reasons forsuch shrinkage. Replies haven’t beenforthcoming, it said.
In its affidavit, NCRPB claims that it sent letters dated April 7, May 6, May 8and May 12 of this year to the NCR statesof Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh andRajasthan about the issue.
It also claimed that, concerned oversuch large diversions, it had on June 23written to all the nodal officers (princi-pal secretaries) of these states. NCRPBhas requested the NGT to take actionagainst erring states.
“They (states) must satisfy the tribu-nal regarding such alarming shrinkageas observed through satellite imager-ies… your lordships may impose sanc-tions, and orders be issued to rectify thewrong,” the affidavit states.
NCZs are eco-sensitive areasmarked out in sub-regional plans andmaster plans where large construc-tions are not allowed. The affidavitmakes another i nteresting suggesti-on—“in view of the very low existing
forest cover of the region (4.02%) it isimperative to bring more areas underforest so as to maintain the ecologicalbalance”.
All wastelands identified in the ex-isting land use 1999 and proposed landuse plan 2021, irrigation canals, drains,roads, railway lines and village com-mon lands are thereafter proposed to bebrought under forest cover.
The affidavit was submitted in anapplication filed by the Legal Aid Com-
mittee of the NGT Bar Associationagainst the ministry of environmentand forests.
“The NGT bench will hear the mat-ter again on November 11,” said RajPanjwani, senior advocate represent-ing the applicant.
Panjwani explained that in suchcases punishment could be sought forofficers involved. The corruption anglecan be explored to see how the land hasbeen diverted and the ‘polluter pays’principle will apply.
NCRPB’s remarks on a proposal totreat even wasteland and commonlands as forest may ensure protectionfor densely-forested zones like MangarBani along the Gurgaon-Faridabadhighway.
But land use specifications in themaster or regional plan do not seem tobe a deterrent. A study carried out by Intach (Indian National Trust for Artand Cultural Heritage) last year hadfound that as many as 21 lakes havedisappeared in the national capitalalone since 1997-98.
NCR eco zones shrinking: Survey [email protected]
AFFIDAVIT BY NCRPB ■ ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE AREAS SUCH AS
Extension of Aravali ridge in Rajasthan, Haryana and DelhiForest areasRivers and tributaries of Yamuna, Ganga, Kali, Hindon,Sahibi (Najafgarh drain in Delhi)SanctuariesMajor lakes and water bodies such as Badkal lake, Surajkund, Damdama in Haryana and Siliserh in Rajasthan
■ GROUNDWATER RECHARGEZONES SUCH ASWater bodies, ox-bow lakes and paleochannels
Natural conservation zones (NCZs) in regional plan 2021
CRYING OUT FOR PROTECTION
HOW MUCH NCZ IS LOST ASPER NCRPB’S REVIEW (%)
Haryana RajasthanUPDelhi
2615.4
43.9
11.2
New Delhi: A 13-year-oldschool dropout from Jhark-hand’s Maoist-hit Simdega dis-trict promised domestic workin Delhi was found at RajouriGarden Metro station by policeon Sunday after she ran awayfrom her employer’s house un-able to bear the mistreatment.Her story has again brought tospotlight how children fromthe interiors of the troubledstate are finding themselves inthe capital’s homes.
The rescue of this girlcomes a day after wanted traf-ficker Pannalal Mahto and his
wife Sunita were arrested.Pannalal hails from Jhark-hand and is known for his in-fluence among placementagencies. The crime branch ofDelhi Police and JharkhandPolice are jointly probing Pan-nalal’s links with Maoists.
The 13-year-old girl at Ra-jouri Garden Metro stationtold a surprised police teamthat she was desperate to re-turn to her family in Simdegawhere she said she was study-ing in a school. She says shewants to return to school. Shehas been put in the care of Nir-mal Chhaya children’s homein keeping with the orders of
the Child Welfare Committee.Police are now trying to traceher parents.
Police are also investigat-ing the involvement of a mem-ber of an illegal placementagency who brought her herewith the promise to provideher work. The child, in herstatement before the ChildWelfare Committee, said shewas brought to Delhi by one‘Raju’ two months ago. ‘Raju’then sent her to a private resi-dence where her employerwhom she addressed as ‘Aunty’used to scold her every timeshe did not like her work. Thewoman even tried to call Rajubut every time his phone wasunreachable, the girl said. Shehas told CWC that she had beenasked to leave several times.
On October 19, she left thehouse and managed to reachRajouri Garden Metro stationwhere she was luckily found bypolice. In its order on Monday,the Child Welfare Committeehas mentioned that the childdoes not know the address ofthe house in which she wasplaced for work. She failed toidentify the house when shewas taken to the area by police.
Speaking to TOI, Rishikantfrom Shakti Vahini, which hasbeen “following the case close-ly”, said human traffickers areoperating in the guise of place-ment agents and hence “CWCmust call for an interstate in-vestigation into how the childreached Delhi and landed up atthe Metro station”. The NGOhas also contacted the superin-tendent of police, Simdega, totrace her family.
Trafficked teenflees employer’shouse, rescued
The girl said she wasbrought to Delhi by oneRaju two months ago.Police are probing theinvolvement of an illegalplacement agency
New Delhi: Two constableswere attacked by a group ofmen when they tried to stopthem from gambling at abuilding under constructionin Uttam Nagar, west Delhi,around 9pm on Sunday. Po-lice nabbed five people, in-cluding a juvenile, from thescene.
The incident took placenear the Nawada housingcomplex. The cops received acall from a resident that fiveto six men had gathered atthe construction site andwere creating a ruckus. Con-stables Mandeep and Shai-lendra reached the spot andasked the men to leave.
Police said the men, all ofwhom were drunk, started
abusing the constables andthreatened to beat them up ifthey did not leave themalone. When the cops tried toremove them forcibly, a scuf-fle broke out. One of the mis-creants charged at them witha stick; after the blow, the po-licemen were pelted withstones.
Soon, residents of the col-ony came to their rescue.They chased and caught holdof the five men. A team fromthe Uttam Nagar police sta-
tion also arrived after theconstables sought reinforce-ment. The cops were taken toDDU Hospital. They had sus-tained injuries on the headand arms. They were re-leased from the hospital onMonday morning.
Police said the accused,Chandar (38), Suresh (30), Kr-ishna (34) and Naresh (36),were all residents of Dwarkaand had come to have dinnerat an eatery after a fewdrinks. “A case under sec-tions 186 (obstructing publicservant in discharge of hisduties), 307 (attempt to mur-der) and 353 (assault or crim-inal force to deter public ser-vant from discharge of hisduty) was registered,” saidadditional commissioner(west) Ranvir Singh.
In a similar incident, atraffic constable was thrownout of a moving car in Seema-puri, northeast Delhi, on Sat-urday night. Police said thetraffic cop had flagged downa Mahindra Xylo driven byAnuj Kumar near the Seema-puri crossing for going in thewrong direction. He askedthe driver to take a U- turnand stop his vehicle on theother side for a challan, sit-ting beside the driver’s seat.
Instead of stopping, Anujdrove the vehicle for about4km and then pushed theconstable out of it and triedto speed away. His colleaguespursued and nabbed Anujwhile he headed for his homein Kalyanpuri. A case of at-tempt to murder has beenregistered against him.
Cops try to stop gambling, attackedIn another incident, atraffic constable wasthrown out of a movingcar in Seemapuri,northeast Delhi, on Saturday night
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi: A day after TOI reported thatparking attendants were fleecing peopleand charging anything from Rs 50 to Rs 250at various markets owing to the festiverush, North Delhi Municipal Corporationfiled 11 FIRs against parking contractors on Monday.
Some parking contractors in KarolBagh, Rajendra Nagar and ChandniChowk were also blacklisted after a sur-prise inspection by corporation officials onMonday morning.
Commissioner P K Gupta said a hike inparking rates is in the works but overcharg-ing is a crime. “We have filed FIRs againstparking contractors. In the Karol Baghmarket, parking attendants were chargingmuch more than the rates. The violationswere many— information wasn’t dis-played, attendants were not in uniform andmore cars were parked than was permit-ted,” he said.
While North Corporation’s standingcommittee has cleared the proposal for hik-ing parking rates, attendants at many mar-kets have already started charging the pro-posed rates. On Sunday, TOI spoke to manydistressed shoppers complaining of over-charging. Several complaints were postedon the councillors’ and the corporation’sFacebook page. “The attendants were asking for Rs 100 for two hours at Karol
Bagh. It’s ridiculous,” said Rohtash Singh,abusinessman.
The official parking rates are Rs 10 forthe first10 hours and Rs 20 for the next 10hours. But now, North Corporation is mull-ing Rs 20 for the first one hour and Rs 10 forevery subsequent hour. “All councillorsand officials in the Karol Bagh zone havebeen instructed to carry out regular inspec-tions at markets to ensure people aren’tfleeced. You can also file a police complaintagainst any such malpractice and actionwill be taken,” said Rajesh Bhatia, KarolBagh zone committee chairman.
Parking contractors have been told toput up information boards with their num-bers and parking rates. South Corporationofficials are also cracking down on parkingcontractors but no FIRs were filed. “Zonalofficials are told to keep a watch over thesecontractors; if they are overcharging, theircontracts will be terminated immediately,”said Subhash Arya, leader of the house,South Corporation.
11 FIRs filed against parking [email protected]
TIMES IMPACT
LET THERE BE LIGHTSAnindya Chattopadhyay
SPOILT FOR CHOICE: Markets are flooded with bright and colourful options for Diwali
New Delhi: Though the lieu-tenant governor’s approvalfor making PUC certificatesmandatory for buying petrolis yet to come, departmentsare already at loggerheadsover enforcement.
“While the proposal formandatory PUC certificationcame from the environmentdepartment, enforcement ofthe rule is likely to be handledby the transport or food andsupplies department,” said asenior government official.However, the transport depar-tment, which was asked tolook after enforcement, said itdoesn’t have enough person-nel and that the food and sup-plies department should takeon the responsibility as petrol
pumps fall under them. Thefood and supplies depart-ment, in turn, has also re-fused claiming it’s not theirjob, said sources in the gov-ernment.
Transport department of-ficials admitted that the issue
came up for discussion.“There is an acute lack of per-sonnel in the department. Di-verting them to check PUCcertificates at petrol pumps isimpossible,” said the official.
Officials also argued thereare thousands of petrolpumps and stationing offi-cers at each of them is next toimpossible. The same argu-ment, said sources, has beenforwarded by the food andsupplies department, whichalso went on to add it was notits responsibility to deploypersonnel at petrol pumps.
The proposal, which isawaiting clearance, will allowrefuelling station employeesto turn away customers with-out a PUC certificate. The finefor the first violation is Rs1,000 and Rs 2,000 thereafter.
Row over enforcing PUC rulesTIMES NEWS NETWORK
PASSING THE BUCK