Building and planning norms

The government has specified two main requirements — building norms and planning norms — for applications under the scheme for residential, commercial and multi-storey buildings. The building norms, according to the BDA Planning and Building Standard Regulation 2018, contains the rules and regulations that need to be adhered to on placement of doors, stairways, lifts, ramps, corridors and refuge areas in buildings. The planning norms, according to the regulation, cover different aspects of a particular building plan, including the land area, built up area and provision for parking. It provides separate permissions for separate buildings.

Planning

Norms for residential buildings: For residential buildings with a built-up area of up to 300sqm, ground coverage should be 100 per cent. For those with built-up area between 300-1,500sqm, ground coverage should be 75 per cent. In both cases, parking facilities is not mandatory. Coverage area is not applicable for apartments. However, there has to be 50 per cent space for parking and applicants will have to obtain the consent of resident welfare associations or apartment owners’ association.

Norms for commercial buildings: Commercial establishments with a built-up area of up to 300sqm must have ground coverage (carpet area of a building, excluding gardens or open spaces adjacent to the plot) up to 100 per cent with parking facility of 25 per cent. Those with built-up area of more than 300sqm must have 75 per cent ground coverage, while the parking requirement is set at 50 per cent. Buildings with more than 500sqm built-up area must have 70 per cent ground coverage and its parking requirement should be 75 per cent.

Norms for high-rises: Coverage area is not applicable for multi-storey residential buildings. However, six metres of vacant land on each side of the building, 75 per cent parking space, and consent of resident welfare associations have been made mandatory. For a commercial establishment, the coverage area will have to be 65 per cent with six metres of vacant land on each side and 75 per cent parking space.

Building

Norms for residential buildings: Staircases and corridors have not been made mandatory for residential buildings. However, apartments and special buildings must have provisions of a second staircase as the first one will be used for emergency exits. If a building has a single staircase, the owner will have to build a second one before applying for the scheme. Corridors with a minimum width of 1.5m are must for these buildings.

Norms for high-rises: Any kind of multi-storey buildings must have staircases with a minimum width of 1.5m. Of the two staircases, one has to be fitted with smoke extraction system and fire resistant doors. If the width of the staircase doesn’t meet the norms, the building owner will have to create a refuge area of 10sqm fitted with smoke extraction system and fire resistance doors. Corridors will have to have at least two exit doors, while the minimum width has to be 1.5m.

Compiled by Sandeep Mishra, pictures by Ashwinee Pati