It’s official: Builders must pay premium for extra FSI

CM Okays Civic Chief's Plan To Curb Nexus Of Realtors, Officials

Mumbai:In one of the biggest decisions of his tenure, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan on Tuesday okayed apath-breaking policy to streamline building approvals

in the city and check the nexus between unscrupulous developers and municipal officials who sanction building plans. 
    Formulated by municipal commissioner Subodh Kumar, the policy will curtail his own discretionary powers to grant building concessions to developers. Most building files will now be approved at the civic executive engineer's level and only in rare cases will they be put up before the commissioner. 
    The new policy will levy a heavy premium on builders who want to build a little more than the permissible floor space index (FSI)—the ratio of the total built-up area vis-a-vis the plot size. The BMC hopes to earn around Rs 1,000 crore a year by charging this premium. 
    The amended policy offers 35% compensatory floor space index for residential buildings and 20% for both commercial and industrial structures. 
WHAT THE NEW RULES SAY 
t Areas like balcony, flower beds, etc. to be counted in FSI. In lieu, builders will get compensatory FSI of 35% for houses and 20% for commercial structures t 25% extra parking to be allowed sans premium but without counting it in FSI t Balcony area will be included in FSI, charged a premium t 60%, 80% and 100% premium of ready reckoner rates for extra FSI in residential, industrial and commercial buildings. BMC eyes Rs 1,000 crore/year t No premium for rehab buildings using extra FSI Cabinet nod for housing regulator I n a move that will bring succour to flat-buyers who are now at the mercy of unscrupulous developers, the state cabinet has okayed the setting up of a Housing Regulatory Authority (HRA) and a Housing Appellate Tribunal. Once it is done, developers will have to provide details of their projects on the HRA website before carrying out transactions. P 5