The Kolkata Municipal Corporation has temporarily halted the issuance of permits for new high rises in the city.
The decision comes following the Airport Authority of India’s norms requiring a clearance from the airport authorities for building highrises within 25km vicinity of the city airport and flying club At Behala in the backdrop of the recent Ahmedabad plane crash.
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Recently, the state urban development department also has been instructed not to give permission to buildings taller than 25.5 metres in and around the city. As reiterated by the mayor, Firhad Hakim, the AAI is bringing some norms for buildings in the background of the Ahmedabad plane tragedy. According to the mayor, the civic body is awaiting notification that is to be issued by the airport authorities clarifying the norms and guidelines on the permissible height of the buildings within 25 km of the city airport. For now, the mayor is said to have instructed the building department not to issue any permission to any new high rises in its limits.
Meanwhile, the KMC has decided to narrow down the footpaths having width more than five feet to enable free walking space to pedestrians. As informed by Mr Hakim, who is also the state urban development and municipal affairs department minister, wider pavements enable space parking of vehicles illegally. Also, encroachments on footpaths, forces the pedestrians to take to the roads for walking bringing dangers of accidents. As pointed out by Mr Hakim, to prevent this, the civic body has decided to stick to the five feet width of pavements at stretches that do not have hawkers or boulevards. The mayor also said that emphasis is being given by the municipal corporation to keep pavements free of encroachments and make them available for pedestrians.