8216;Tall order8217; hits far and wide

The guidelines,well-intentioned as they might seem with their aim of ensuring fire preparedness in new projects,have ended up leading to a nationwide slowdown in the sector. They have led to delays in getting environmental clearance,which in turn have escalated the cost of housing units by 5-7 per cent within one year,say industry insiders. The guidelines are now being reviewed by an MoEF committee.

T K Alexander Vaidian,chairman of the Builders Association of India,Kerala,says the guidelines have further hit a sector yet to rise out of the economic slowdown. This has obviously delayed delivery of projects and increased housing cost,which will ultimately be passed on to the home buyer, he says.

A top official at a prominent real-estate firm says a huge amount of money is stuck in projects. Even if these are recast to meet the MoEF norms,the greater cost input that this will involve,too,will be passed on to the buyer.

As it is,delays in getting environmental clearance are already a concern. EIA environmental impact assessment clearance takes an average 20 months in Maharashtra,a year in Madhya Pradesh,10 months in Punjab and eight in Kerala,according to a realty industry study.

Bolt from the blue

Among projects that seemed on course until the guidelines hit them out of the blue,nearly 200 are in Maharashtra alone,with most stalled on the ground that the access road is not wide enough.

Vista Luxuria in Pune,a 36-metre-high complex worth Rs 66 crore and meant for 2,000 residents,was cleared by the town planning authority in 2011 but waited nearly a year for environmental clearance before it was eventually denied that in October 2012. The road was 9 m wide,when the guideline for that height is a minimum 18 m.

Our project was denied environmental clearance after waiting for 18 months, says Pritam Khare,general manager of Parmar Indus Associates that undertook the project. No one is factoring in that the access road is only 100 metres long and connects straight to the 45-metre-wide,Pune-Solapur national highway. Also,the 9-metre-wide access road can easily accommodate two fire tenders. From where does the developer bring a 18-metre road when the local authorities have made space for a 9-metre one? The town planning authority knew all this and therefore sanctioned the project in 2011.

Last January,a wait since early 2012 finally ended for Lifescapes in Wakad,Pune district. The 69-metre project,worth Rs 210 crore,did get cleared but with a strong warning against a possible violation of the guidelines. The occupation certificate,the environment departments state-level expert appraisal committee ruled,would be given only when the required 45-metre access road is ready.

In October 2012,after months of waiting,Project Sunshine Hills by Tricon Builders,also in Pune,was denied clearance. The 30-metre building had a right of way around 9 m. Project Vermont in Wagholi,Pune,worth Rs 48 crore and for 3,000 occupants,met with a similar fate that month.

From Bhopal and Jabalpur to Pune,Bangalore,NCR and parts of Kerala,projects in many states have been affected,with the situation said to be the worst in Maharashtra and Kerala. Incidentally,it was a visit by an MoEF team to a Kerala project site and its narrow access road that led to the framing of the guidelines.

Indignation

With the list of stalled projects getting longer,the Confederation of Real Estate Developers Associations of India CREDAI took the matter up with the MoEF as well as the Prime Ministers Office,arguing it was unfeasible to adhere to these guidelines because few Indian cities offer the specified 30-metre roads. They challenged the very authority of the MoEF to rule on road width and building heights,subjects they insist are in the domain of town planning authorities and state governments.

Says Lalit Jain,CREDAI chairman,How can the environment ministry define fire safety when local town planning departments are doing so? If these guidelines are not so modified as to see ground reality,we will be forced to explore other avenues for redress.

Following a number of representations from the realty industry and an intervention by the PMO,a committee set up under Planning Commission member K Kasturirangan is reviewing the guidelines.

Ministry officials justify the need for the guidelines framed by the expert appraisal committee but say they are keeping an open mind. The increasing frequency of fire incidents is worrying,hence these guidelines came up. However,the ministry has an open mind on the issue, a highly placed ministry source says. The Kasturirangan committee is addressing this. If international best practices are adhered to for fire safety for instance proper fire exits,access and so on are ensured problems related to these guidelines,if any,can be sorted out.

The sources insist that as per the EIA notification,buildings are in the MoEF domain: local authorities handle this area but the MoEF too has a role.

An urban planning expert from the Indian Institute Public Administration appreciates the intent behind the guidelines but adds effecting these on the ground is a tall order. While in new areas where planned development is possible,such guidelines hold good,how can it be done in existing cities? says Prof K K Pandey,professor of urban management at IIPA. Technically,these issues are fine,but how do you effect them in unplanned existing urban areas,is the question. Usually,it is best to leave these formulations to urban planning departments as they are aware of local situations and constraints.

For effective fire-safety measures in new residential buildings,suggests Shekhar Tamhane,managing director of Maharashtra-based Ultra Tech Environmental Consultancy,the key is to set up a coordinating mechanism between the MoEF/disaster management authority and the state authorities with local realities kept in mind.

For instance in Mumbai,the bulk is redevelopment of old buildings on small plots and with no option but to go vertical, Tamhane says. Even the new planned roads are 28.5 metres wide short of the 30-metre road the MoEF is demanding. In fact,70-80 per cent projects in Mumbai cannot take off under such a guideline. Ideally,such a guideline should have come into effect only after the opinion of stakeholders and the public was taken.

Dr Vishwambhar H Choudhari of the Oasis Environmental Foundation recommends a middle path. While these particular guidelines may be exorbitant,I strongly feel the issue of fire safety in new construction projects must be addressed in some way or the other.