Elected Representatives have another go at the Hills in the State
It is clear that our elected representatives have vested interests in the Hills of the state. This is the Second time in two years that they have tried to push through laws that will allow Construction on hills against popular public opinion. Since the law requires that they call for suggestions & objections from the public it is mandatory on them to let the Public know of such a proposal. But it seems that they have kept the issue as low key as possible to avoid a controversy as happened during the Development Plan issue.
It is high time now that our leaders should know that we are watching their every move & that they should think twice before trying to pass such proposals. We need to wake up once more to the call of the Hills, wake up to save our city from being razed of its elements, wake up to ensure ourselves a future.
The Tekdi Family appeals to all citizens to fervently oppose this proposal & support us in our quest to protect the hills from concrete predators. The only strength of our leaders in taking such actions is our ignorance.
Send this information to everyone on your mailing list & request them to do so to everyone on theirs.
We need to garner a huge support to save our hills & let our “leaders” know that we exist. We need to do what we can to save the lungs of our city.
We shall be publishing all relevant data as soon as possible on our website. An online protest form has also been provided at
www.tekdi.org/prot.htm .
A Discussion has also been started at the Eco Portal
www.tekdi.com Forums to garner international support.
The Report As from the Indian Express
The Urban Development Department (UDD) issued a notification on March 6 (under section 20 of the Maharashtra Regional & Town Planning (MR&TP) Act to amend the DC rules and invited objections and suggestions from citizens on its proposal to allow residential constructions on hills. The March 6 notification follows the State Government’s decision in November 1996 to develop hill stations in Maharashtra to increase tourist traffic and encourage proposals from private companies with a minimum holding of 400 hectares.But, according to officials in the Town Planning Department, present DC rules strictly prohibit ‘‘cutting of hills’’ under any circumstance, besides permitting a 0.30 Floor Space Index (FSI) with ground plus one floor. Hence the need for an amendment.In its amendment, UDD has proposed that hills should not be ‘‘cut as far as possible’’ while developing hill stations. This, even officials of Town Planning Department admit is vague— leaving a lot to the discretion of the builder.The UDD has also proposed that structures on stilts should be allowed on hills having contour between 1:3 and 1:5. According to another modification suggested by the UDD, out of 0.30 FSI, 25 per cent can be used for ground plus two storied structures while remaining 75 per cent can be used for ground floor or ground plus one storey structure.
Citizens can send their their suggestions/objections to the office of Deputy Director, Town Planning in Sahkarnagar.
