Kolkata Municipal Corporation Proposes Limits on Regularization of Illegal Constructions

The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is contemplating imposing restrictions on the “regularization” of illegally constructed portions of buildings, limiting such regularization to 10 percent of the sanctioned area of the structure or 5,000 square feet, whichever is lesser, according to officials.

Currently, building regulations do not impose any restrictions on how much construction beyond the approved plan can be regularized. The term “regularization” is used by KMC officials to denote the process of legalizing unauthorized structures after the payment of a fee by the builder or owner of the structure.

Civic officials assert that the provision for regularization is intended to permit minor deviations from a building plan to remain if they do not compromise the stability of the structure. Sometimes, structures are extended beyond the approved plan, only to later discover that the additional construction does not violate any building regulations, explained a KMC official.

However, this provision has been misused over time, with developers erecting entire buildings without proper plans or adding multiple floors illegally under the assumption that the KMC would ultimately legalize the construction or floors after receiving a fee.

“We have proposed to establish a limit on the illegal structure that can be regularized. The current decision is to allow up to 10 percent of the sanctioned area of a building or 5,000 square feet, whichever is lesser,” stated a senior KMC official on Sunday. “We will forward the proposal to the state government, and final approval will be required from them.”

The decision to regularize an illegal structure is made by a special officer, who serves as a quasi-judicial authority, according to officials. The determination to demolish or regularize a structure rests with the discretion of the special officer, taking into account factors such as structural stability.

However, the special officer operates within the framework of the Building Rules 2009 and the KMC Act, 1980, with no mention of any limitation on regularization in the rules or the act.

KMC sources indicate that if the proposed limit is adopted, the special officer will not be permitted to regularize anything beyond it. For example, if a house has a sanctioned area of 2,000 square feet, under the proposed regulations, only illegal portions measuring up to 200 square feet will be eligible for regularization.

“In the case of a housing complex with a sanctioned area of 200,000 square feet, ten percent of the area would be 20,000 square feet. However, we will only permit regularization of illegally built portions totaling 5,000 square feet. Hence, the clause ‘whichever is lesser’ will be incorporated in the proposal. We will not tolerate indiscriminate regularization,” clarified a KMC official.

This initiative to establish limits comes in response to the collapse of an illegal under-construction building in Garden Reach, which resulted in the tragic loss of 13 lives. The KMC has faced significant criticism for its role in permitting illegal buildings to proliferate throughout the city.

Over the past year, the KMC has demolished illegal portions of nearly 850 buildings, many of which were constructed without any approved plans from the KMC. The civic body has instructed its sub-assistant engineers to conduct daily inspections of wards and identify illegal structures.