The Chennai city's environment may become increasingly peppered with skyscrapers as a result of the government's reversal of the power provided to the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) in awarding planning permission for high-rise projects.

Builders are pleased with this decision as it could reduce delays in approving planning proposals and ensure faster completion of projects. However, they also hope that the government will not let the files remain stagnant, as has happened in the past.

According to CMDA minister P K Sekar Babu, the government will now be able to monitor the progress of planning permission and question officials in case of any delays. This will help in curbing the delay in clearing files.

Under the new amendment, a panel consisting of the member secretary of CMDA and eight other officials from various departments will review the plans for high-rise buildings and recommend them to the government.

The government will then issue an order granting permission.

The construction industry faced significant losses due to the stagnant file process followed by the government before April 2022. In order to address this issue, developers suggested that the approval should be given by CMDA itself, similar to the practice in the Directorate of Town and Country Planning.

In April of last year, an order was passed allowing the MSB panel to approve buildings up to a height of 30.5 meters. However, for buildings higher than this, the MSB panel would provide recommendations to a HRB committee in CMDA for clearance, according to Times Of India report.

The delay between the MSB panel meeting and the HRB committee meeting resulted in a large number of pending files.

Developers expressed their preference for the government to have the power to intervene in such cases, allowing them to represent the CMDA minister directly in case of delays, instead of going through a lengthy process.

Developers have consistently urged the government to implement a Single Window system with defined timelines for approvals. This streamlined process would not only benefit the housing industry, but also generate more revenue for the government, create employment opportunities, boost related industries, and provide customers with a wider range of options.

President of the Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Associations of India (CREDAI), S Sivagurunathan, has requested the government to expedite permission approvals within a maximum of 10 days.

Chennai's Skyline

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