Action on farmhouses for violating norms

If you have booked a farmhouse for a wedding, better check with the civic agency whether they have been flouting any norms. Neelam Pandey reports.

If you have booked a farmhouse for a wedding, better check with the civic agency whether they have been flouting any norms.

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The South Delhi Corporation has decided to crack down on farmhouses that have become a traffic hazard and have been holding multiple functions in a day, an illegal act. The moves comes after numerous complaints from Delhi traffic police.

“We had complained to the civic agency about farmhouses that don’t have proper parking arrangements. Bottlenecks are created at the entry gate, leading to traffic jams on the main road. We have challaned a number of them but now we have recommended that they should be sealed,” said Anil Shukla, additional CP, (traffic).

For instance, in south Delhi’s Chattarpur, which houses a number of farmhouses, traffic jams are a common sight, especially during peak hours. There have been instances where traffic has spilled over and created bottlenecks on the Mehrauli-Gurgaon road too.

The south Delhi Corporation had sealed five odd farmhouses recently and is now planning to take action on others for violating norms. The Delhi traffic police has taken up the matter with the Lt Governor too. According to the civic agency, a committee comprising officials from Delhi police, Delhi government and fire department give clearances to farmhouses and recently they have been flooded with complaints.

The civic agency said they were monitoring all farmhouses in their jurisdiction as during the wedding season, a number of them that do not have permission hold functions. To ensure people do not book farmhouses where commercial functions are not allowed, the civic agency is planning to put up all the details online.

“Once a commercial farmhouse is sealed for violations such as traffic jams, or not providing adequate parking space, the owner has to give an affidavit to meet required norms and pay a penalty too. The procedure can take anything between 10 and 15 days. During that period, functions can’t be held,” said the official.

Officials said they had decided to intensify their drive. The North Delhi Corporation has cancelled permission of 14 farmhouses as they were flouting norms.