Constructions

When Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu was Union urban development minister he had underscored in Parliament the rationale behind the government’s plan to extend the immunity period.

Besides protecting certain unauthorised constructions, the objective of the extension was to provide an “opportunity to government agencies to finalise norms, policy guidelines, feasible strategies and orderly implementation of the plan”, he had said.

However, not much progress has happened in three years.

“The process of reviewing the 2021 Master Plan, which was to be completed by 2015, has not started. The civic agencies are yet to come up with a policy framework. There is little option before the government but to extend the law,” a government source said.

According to Prof KT Ravindran, the dean emeritus at the RICS School of Built Environment, the cycle of events demonstrates the malfunctioning of instruments such as planning, implementation, development and regulation.

“It’s time to rethink the preparation process for the Master Plan. The time lag for completing the plan is so huge that by the time it is ready, things change on the ground. The recommendations become outdated and often irrelevant,” said Ravindran, who is former chairman of the Delhi Urban Arts Commission.

The bill, once cleared by Parliament, will provide immunity to all properties that have unauthorised constructions.

The buildings include commercial establishments in residential areas, high-end designer boutiques and furniture showrooms on the Mehrauli-gurgaon Road, Shahpur Jat, Hauz Khas Village and other areas. Slums, hospitals, schools and religious institutions that have encroached on public land will also be spared.

The government doesn’t have a definite figure on the number of unauthorised constructions that came up till May 2014, but Delhi’s civic authorities estimated it could be more than 100,000. better equipped to handle low visibility this season in a new terminal opened recently.

Private airliner Goair has shifted operations from Terminal 1(D) to T2. Indigo Airlines has moved court against the relocation, while Spicejet is yet to take a call.

All domestic airlines operating from Terminal ID have to move one-third of their operations to T2 by January 1.

“Terminal 2 will be a big help for T1 as it will take some of its load. The new Gps-based navigational system for Follow-me vehicles will help in effective guidance of aircraft in dense fog,” said I Prabhakara Rao, the CEO of Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL).

Since pilots have a limited view from the cockpit, the Follow-me ground crew service is provided to facilitate aircraft movement.

Trained professionals are deputed for this service.