50% of buildings cleared for construction lack OC

Mumbai: Almost one out of two buildings cleared to come up in the city does not have an occupation certificate (OC). 

    Latest data accessed by activist Anil Galgali using the right to information (RTI) Act shows that in the last nine years 13,313 proposals were cleared but OCs were issued for merely 6,888 buildings. 
    An OC is a document issued by the municipal corporation to a builder after the completion of a building to certify that the construction is in compliance with the approved drawings of the plan and that building codes and laws have been followed. 
    Data accessed through the RTI query revealed that from 2003-04 to 2012-13, 14,370 proposals were received. Of these, 9,841 got an IOD (intimation of disapproval), another 13,313 were granted a CC (commencement certificate), 6,888 received an OC and 128 were issued a BCC (building completion certificate). 
    "On an average, merely 51% of the buildings that were cleared to come up in the city received an occupation certificate," Galgali said. "Such data must be put up online, as gullible citizens are taken for a ride by builders." 
    He said he had demanded that the BMC put out these details every three months. 
    Galgali claimed that BMC officials were in a hurry to issue CCs and IODs, but when the time comes to issue OCs officials often do not work according to the law.

In the last nine years, 13,313 proposals were cleared, but OCs were issued for only 6,888 buildings