DC Rules Minutes of Meeting 20 Sep 2008

Revision of Development Plan (1987) of Pune City
Minutes of the Meeting on DC Rules Sub-Group
Date & Time: - 20th Sept, 2008 at 3.30 pm

Meeting of the sub-group on Development Control Rules of Revision of Development Plan (1987) was held in the conference hall of PMC

Mr. R.N. Gohad welcomed the members & stated that as per decided in the 6th Steering committee meeting, the various D.C. Rule subgroups are reformed into one group under the chairmanship of Shri V.W. Deshpande. The important discussions held in the meeting hall are as follows.

Shri Gohad presented the copy of comparison table on Banglore DCR’s as decided in last meeting.

Shri Vikas Bhandari stated that along with Shri Kembhavi & Shri Raje, they have prepared a draft guideline for the DCR’s to be prepared. In that they incorporated various aspect to make the DCR’s transparent & user friendly. He gives briefs of the DCR guideline, explained the objectives, methodology, & strategies to be formed to prepare DCR’s. He has circulated copies of work done by their group.

Mr. V.W. Deshpande stated that before formulating DCR’s we have to make policies & strategies considering growth trend of the city. For that various survey data & its analysis is required. With the help of this data we can predict growth trend of the city & then we can formulate the idealistic DCR’s.

Mr. Raje suggested that they are working on three important categories of Rules as Mandatory, Optional & Incentive type of Rules & they suggested different color coding for each type of Rules.

There a discussion was made on various important issues like further DCR’s- is a tool for achieving goals?, sustainability norms, implacability of DCR, densification & infrastructure, incentivisation of areas which are not developing, objectives of FSI, etc.

It was decided that the draft of the D. C. rules in preparation by Shri. Vikas Bhondari, Shri. Kembhavi, Shri. Raje may be complete shortly & will make available to the group for discussion and finalization.

Shri. Phatak Ex. Chief Planner, MMRDA is called for association of this group. He emailed certain points which are mentioned below:-

I. The technical aspects of DCR’s related to structural public health and other engineering aspects can be decided with reference to NBC

II. Similarly the procedural aspects including use of IT and e-governance in the process of development control could also be independently pursued

III. However other aspects can not be decided independently the objectives. For example if the objective is to support & promote car based travel, the parking regulations will be different from those that serve the strategy of promoting public transport and restraining use of private vehicles

IV. Planning objectives and strategies therefore need to be decided first before launching the DCR exercise. Please do not follow the example of Mumbai by concentrating on DCR’s alone without having a bigger picture in mind

V. I do not know whether any terms of reference have been formulated for the group. If not it would be a good staring point.

VI. I would be able to meaningfully participate only when these issues are clarified.

Certain plans are there for discussion which will be necessary for formulation & proposed changes in the Development Regulations.

Shri. Shirish Patel one of the leading architect in Mumbai has also associated with this group. However he can not attend the meeting which scheduled on 20.09.2008.

Mr. Ranjit Gadgil highlighted some important points on the discussions held in the meeting are as follows:

1. It is important that the basic purpose of FSI should be made clear. This has an important policy decision implication. If FSI is a tool that is used to control the density of persons so as to ensure that there is proper provision of basic amenities, then the policy of greater FSI for low income housing is contary to this principle. This is a double impact since low income houses are smaller, hence more tenements are accommodated in the same FSI and low income family sizes also tend to be bigger. This point has been explained by Mr. Shirish Patel and should be discussed at the next meeting.

2. The FSI restriction also is linked ultimately to the provision of basic services. Basic services are made possible either by the private sector or the Municipality. It was stated at the meeting that development funds collected by the PMC are used specifically for improvement of infrastructure in that "zone". It is important that we collect information about how much money has been raised in these zones and how much infrastructure has actually been provided. It was also pointed out that this scheme has the disadvantage of skewed development since better developed areas tend to get more funds which in turn allows for greater development.

3. It was also decided to create norms for eco-housing that are in-line with incentives/dis-incentives framework being adopted. Essentially depeding on the usage, energy consumption per sq m should be decided. Buildings that exceed this consumption would be charged higher taxes/fees. This should force builders to seek more eco-friendly friendly designs, which is currently not being done. Special reference was made to the statement of Hon'ble Energy Minister, Shri Dilip Walse-Patil at a meeting at MCCIA in this regard.

4. It was also decided that upon distribution of draft DC Rules by Mr. Bhandari, Ranjit Gadgil and Sujit Patwardhan will provide the appropriate measures keeping in mind the sustainable transport policies adopted by the PMC.

5. The issue of TP Schemes was also raised since it has been generally agreed upon that it is the preferred method of planning whether for re-development or green field development. This matter must be raised in the larger group, since it will have a bearing on the DC Rules.

It is proposed to arrange further meeting after 15 days when the draft of the proposed changes in DCR completed by Shri. Vikas Bhandari, Shri. Kembhavi and Shri. Raje will be circulated to the members. The Schedule of the next meeting will be informed a week before to all the members. The meeting concluded at 5.45 p.m. with the vote of thanks of the PMC.

Present

Mr. Vidyadhar Deshpande

Mr. R. N. Gohad

Mr. Vikas Bhandari

Mr. Shirish Kembhavi

Mr. Rajiv Raje

Mrs. Anagha Paranjpe

Mr. Ranjit Gadgil

Mr. Sujit Patwardhan

Mr. Vinay Zagade

Mr. Mahendra Pardeshi

Mr. Shivprasad Murari

Ms. Nital Kapse

DC Rules Meeting 26 July, 2008

DC Rules Group Meeting held on Saturday July 26, 2008 at BNCA

The following attended the meeting:

1. Ar Rajiv Raje

2. Ar Shirish Kembhavi

3. Ar Poorva Keskar

4. Mr R N Gohad, with the members of the ELU team

5. Mr Dinesh Girolla

6. Ar Anagha Paranjape

The meeting discussed the following:

1. The points discussed in the July 12 Meeting on Urban Renewal and incentives (via FSI) for plot agglomeration in the congested areas was discussed further. It has been decided that case studies will be done in each category of plot size to check for feasibility issues etc.

2. Discussion also happened on the point of progressively Incentivising TDR use in the outer zone, thereby further ensuring euitable TDR loading in the outer zones of B, C and D, prioritizing zones that face lesser development pressures today.

3. It was discussed that while TDR is being loaded in the outer zones, it will be necessary to look at each zones 'carrying capacity' in terms of various parameters including water availability, road and transport infrasrructure, sanitation infrasstructure etc.

4. The possibility of introducing marginal variations in the DC Rules for various PLANNING SECTORS in the city to promote and enhance the individual character of each sector. These Planning Sectors shall be formed based on various criteria such as landuse character, population dynamics, type of existing building development, environmentally sensitive properties etc. These criteria are to be dicussed in details in further meetings.

5. Marginal variations in the DC Rules in the various sectors will then take into consideration the individual character of each sector to address variations in urban design, special cases, curltural adn heritage significant structures, environmental considerations such as riverfront, lake front, forestland, BDP frontage etc.

6. The following preparation is to be done before the next meeting which is planned on Thursday August 14 , 2008 at BNCA. 2 pm to 4 pm.

a) The DC Rules for fives cities are to be read and analysed based on specific points (to be circulated by Ar Shirish Kembhavi). The five cities and the respective readers are as follows: Mr Gohad - Bangalore; Dinesh - London; Ar Raje - Singapore; Poorva - DDA; Anagha - Hyderabad.

b) Ar Rajiv Raje to circulate the synposis of the DC Rules for Pune that he has compiled. Additionally, he has to circulate the Hyderabad DC Rules in soft form.

Reminder to Mr Pawaskar: Please issue to us the letters that 'appoint' us to work with the DP Steering Committee at the earliest.

Input from Ar Shirish Kembhavi

A format for making a comparison of Key DC rules prevalent in other cities as decided has been prepared and is available at http://government.wikia.com/wiki/Development_Control

The last meeting was to determine the threshold of growth of the City with Water supply as the criteria. It was discussed that we need to find out what is the total water supply to the City including ground water and thereby determine the population that could be sustained.

Mr.Girolla suggested that the sewage received at the treatment plats can be an indicator of the consumption and thereby the information could be interpolated. This being an important aspect, We need to find this out.

DC Rules Meeting 12 July 2008

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE D.C.RULES STUDY GROUP MEETING
HELD IN THE OFFICE OF AR. RAJIV RAJE ON SATURDAY 12TH JULY, 2008.

A] The following were present :
Mr. Dinesh Girolla – Representative of the PMC DC Rules Committee
Ar. Vikas Bhandari – Member of the PMC DC Rules Steering Committee
Ar. Pushkar Kanvinde – Director, NIASA, and PCEF Member
Ar. Rajiv Raje – IIA Pune Representative and PCEF Member
Ar. Shirish Kembhavi – AESA Pune Representative
Ar. Anagha Paranjpe – PCEF Co-ordinator for DC Rules Committee.
Mr. Ranjit Gadgil – Director, Janawani, and Member PCEF & PTTF

B] The following points were discussed in the meeting:

1. The general structure of DC Rules in Pune City and the constraints in application were discussed in general. It was pointed out by Ar.Vikas Bhandari, that there was a need to remove the “extra flab” in the DC rule book – to remove the unnecessary, irrelevant and inoperable regulations. He highlighted several such Rules in the current Rule book which were redundant and required to be deleted.

2. Ar. Vikas Bhandari also emphasised on the need to make the TONE of the rules
“ POSITIVE ”. For instance, instead of a rule saying “ aaa should not be LESS than bbb…”, the phrasing should always be that “ aaa should be MORE than bbb …” .This will induce a
more POSITIVE response in the adoption and application of Rules.

3. Shri.Dinesh Girolla suggested making a comparison of key development rules as are prevalent in major indian cities along with a few overseas examples of model cities, only to get an overview of the way in which issues have been handled elsewhere. Rules of Delhi Municipal Corporation were already circulated for this purpose and the Rules of Bhopal City were handed over to Shri.Girolla for study. It was suggested by Mr. Girolla that comparison of Development Control rules and its impact on the development of those cities for various cities such as Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Singapore and Tokyo to be done. Also, the similarities and future trend of growth between Pune and these cities to be studied.

4. Ar.Vikas Bhandari presented a workable scheme for revitalisation of the Core City by providing an incentive based system which encourages land pooling. It was agreed that this would help in a much better urban fabric in the core city, with more civic amenities, and create Open Spaces in areas which needed them most. A tabular format of the consolidated rules suggested by Ar. Vikas Bhandari in this unique scheme is enclosed herewith in attachment.

5. Shri.Dinesh Girolla suggested that a threshold of ONE ACRE ( approx 4000 Sq.M ) be set in the core city for application of this concept, and rules of non congested area be applied
for such plot with increased FSI being the incentive. There was a counter-suggestion, however, that if an upward sliding scale be adopted as suggested by Ar. Vikas Bhandari, more properties would opt for amalgamation to avail of the incentives – which would be beneficial for the city.

6. Ar. Kembhavi has undertaken the task of splitting the current DC rule book into THREE segments viz. Administrative Rules, Layout & Building Rules and Rules for Services – as a primary exercise for the new structure.

7. There was a discussion on merging all premium paid built-up areas into the basic permissible FSI - as has been done at Bangalore - in order to simplify the process. The pros and cons of the system were discussed and generally found to be promising. This concept would be explored further in detail. It was also pointed out that this idea should not again bring restriction on the open areas within a building.

8. Ar.Rajiv Raje suggested that the new rules should also be categorized into THREE categories or Classes viz. A, B, and C, wherein, Category-A rules would be mandatory to all and sacrosanct - not to be touched or modified, except with a statutory Sect.37 Modification by
the Government. Category-B Rules would be flexible within a RANGE – with options available against payment of premiums to PMC. Such premiums would be treated as payment of compensation paid to the city for availing of some flexible non-detrimental relaxations in rules. Category-C category rules would be completely optional, but highly incentive based. These would allow further non-detrimental concessions in construction, in lieu of proportionate benefits offered for the city without any price tags. This concept would be examined in more detail later.

9. There was an overall concern expressed by all on the issue of parking and various ways to mitigate the problem. Ranjit Gadgil highlighted the issues involved and several options were discussed without any conclusive course of action. The issue is flagged for more discussions.

10. Ar.Bhandari discussed the mobilisation plan for the city and his views on the same. Shri. Girolla was requested to provide an integrated map of old PMC limits and the extended areas to facilitate a more detailed explanation of the concepts and subsequent further discussion.

11. It was agreed unanimously that the DC rules are not an exercise in isolation, but needs to be closely integrated with the physical planning exercise The framework of Rules should be directed to achieve the VISION of the development plan. Ar. Raje cited the lesson given by City Planner Shirish Patel of Ahmedabad where a concept of Density Zoning and its control through DC Rules is in practice. Similar use of DC Rules could be made in Pune to provide a suitable DIRECTION to the inevitable growth in the next 20 years, instead of being just a regulatory tool.

12. It was felt that while the exercise of the ELU is on, an exercise of assessing and recording the infrastructure available in all areas, and future plans if any for the same, also be recorded to facilitate future planning.

The meeting concluded with a decision to meet every week for further discussions. The date, time and venue of weekly meetings will be co-ordinated and communicated by Anagha.

PCEF DC Rules Group 10 Jan ppt text

10 Jan 2008
PCEF DC Rules Theme Group

Summary of Discussions
1) We initiated a broad discussion in which members generally spoke and discussed issues facing Pune’s development

2) This broad discussion helped us streamline our first thoughts towards addressing the Gaps / shortcomings in the existing DC Rules

3) The next level of discussions were to be based on deeper understanding and analysis of the existing DC Rules and their interpretations in practice
Circulars, main issue which is making the understanding and interpretation of the DC Rule mechanism very complex

4) A few more meetings and discussions revealed that a Focused Working Group will have to emerge for any value added suggestions towards changing / modifying the existing DC Rule
The issue faced here is time commitment and isolation of this group from the DP Process Committee

5) The last meeting held on January 3, 2008 decided that:
Our Group may not be able to work on actually framing the DC Rules, which will require serious and sustained time commitment and effort much larger than the Group can handle
We may come up with a DIRECTIVE POLICY for DC Rules, which may be used as a guiding principle for further work


Update on Proposed Working

Next meeting – January 12, 2008

We propose to hold a day long workshop in this month to:
–Have focused discussions and debates on the DC Rules
–Identify gaps and data requirements in a more focused way
–Come out with a Draft DIRECTIVE POLICY which can be then taken up for further work

(Aneeta Benninger, Sujit Patwardhan, Ujwal Keskar, Poorva Keskar, Zigisha Mhaskar
Rajiv Raje, Pushkar Kanvinde, Dinesh Girolla, Subhash Ghaisas, Pratima Kisloskar
Shantanu Roy, Anagha Paranjape – Purohit)