DTCP plans to act against illegal guesthouses operating in Ggm

GURUGRAM: Department of Town and Country Planning is planning to act against the illegal guest houses. It has given a one month notice to the guesthouses to abide by its new rules. According to an official estimate, there are over 400 guesthouses that are operating illegally in the city.

The Department of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) has approved a new policy to set up guest houses and boarding houses in residential colonies, making it easier for such establishments to operate.

The new policy has done away with the restriction of allowing only two guest houses in a sector, said, officials. However, such establishments would only be allowed to operate on sector service roads to ensure residents are not affected.

The new rules, notified by the DTCP, also stipulate that guest houses would be allowed only in sectors where all internal and external services have been provided. No guest house will be allowed to rent a room to a guest for more than a month.

There have been cases earlier where the owners in the city were not registering their guest houses in order to not pay property taxes. Now the illegal guest houses have become a major hub for carrying out criminal activities.

Most of the arrests in the illegal sex racket that have been busted by Gurugram Police have been done from the illegal guesthouses. In addition to the sex racket functioning in these guesthouses, there have also been also arrests in the past of the drug cartels from these guesthouses.

Being in high demand these guesthouses are also resulting in losses to the state exchequer. High demand has resulted in most of the houses being converted into PG'S or guesthouses. However, as these buildings are not registered legally, most of the buildings do not get basic facilities like water and power from the public agencies. Most of the guesthouses have been built in an area of 150 to 200 square yards floors that are more than five-storey.

Now the illegal guest houses have become a major hub for carrying out criminal activities