MPD 2021 amendment: DDA gets 800 suggestions; feedback put before board

The DDA has received over 800 suggestions and objections from the public on the proposed modifications in the Master Plan for Delhi (MPD) 2021 since May 26, officials said today.

The feedback, received over a period of 15 days, was today placed before a board constituted by the urban body, they said.

The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) had invited feedback from people following a directive from the Supreme Court.

"With reference to public notices published in the newspapers on May 26 for inviting objections/suggestions from the public regarding the matter were placed before the Board of Enquiry and Hearing," a senior DDA official said.

In total, more than 800 objections and suggestions were received, and as per different time schedule, 114 persons were called for the category of "godown clusters" and 400 for "shop-cum-residence plots", for their oral evidence before the Board, the DDA said.

"Forty-four persons, for godown clusters category and 87 persons for shop-cum-residence plots category, attended the hearing and presented their oral objections/suggestions before the Board.

"All the objections/suggestions were recorded by the Board, which assured the general public that their grievances will be taken care of before taking a decision," it said in a statement.

Hearing will take place tomorrow as well as per the scheduled programme and has also till the first-half of June 14, the DDA said.

In February, the urban body had processed the modifications, seeking to bring relief to the traders from a sealing drive, which was initiated last December from the Defence Colony market in south Delhi, at the instance of a Supreme Court-appointed monitoring committee.

On May 24, the apex court had observed that the national capital is being "ravaged" by encroachments and illegal constructions, as it rejected the Centre's plea seeking modification of an order asking it to invite suggestions from the public before amending the Master Plan of Delhi.

The top court had on May 15 asked the Centre to give a window of 15 days to the people of Delhi for giving suggestions or objections to the government which had proposed amendments to the master plan.

In February, the DDA had received 725 suggestions from the public on its proposed amendment to the Master Plan for Delhi, which includes bringing a uniform floor-area ratio (FAR) for shop-cum-residence plots and complexes on par with residential plots.

The apex court had on March 6 stayed the proposed changes in the Master Plan that sought to protect traders from the sealing drive in the national capital by increasing the FAR.

The Master Plan-2021 is a blueprint for urban planning and expansion in the metropolis to ensure overall development and the proposed amendments are aimed at bringing a uniform FAR for shop-cum-residential plots and complexes on par with residential plots.

FAR is the ratio of a building's total floor area (gross floor area) to the size of the piece of land on which it is built.