Builders cry foul over new FSI guidelines

Developers are up in arms against the new building-approval guidelines, particularly the proposal to levy 100% premium on the space utilised above FSI, and have threatened to take legal action against the move. The guidelines were unveiled by the municipal commissioner on Thursday.

Developers are up in arms against the new building-approval guidelines, particularly the proposal to levy 100% premium on the space utilised above FSI, and have threatened to take legal action against the move. The guidelines were unveiled by the municipal commissioner on Thursday.

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Municipal commissioner Subodh Kumar has proposed to charge 100% premium on the 25% additional space utilised by the builders above the sanctioned Floor Space Index (FSI) in their projects. These areas include staircases, flower beds, balconies, car decks and terraces.

The builders say the 100% premium is “exorbitantly high”, and it would hurt the real estate industry.

Anand Gupta, Secretary, Builders Association of India said, “There is absolutely no logic in charging such a steep amount. If talks with the government fail, we are open to challenging the guidelines in court.”

The Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (CREDAI) has called for the scrapping of the new guidelines in totality.

“It goes against the concept of affordable housing, and it is an ideal tool to harass builders,” said Lalit Kumar Jain, president, CREDAI.

But Jain defends the practice, saying the super built-up calculations are taken into consideration by the builders while purchasing the plot.

“The entire calculation will go for a toss and projects will suffer,” he warned.

The Maharashtra Chambers of Housing Industry (MCHI) said it welcomes transparency in the whole policy, but it has raised some objections. Apart from the premium, MCHI has asked for a relook into the creation of additional parking slots other than the sanctioned ones, which the municipal commissioner said would be counted in the FSI.

“The current parking spaces allowed under the rules are inadequate,” said Paras Gundecha, president, MCHI.

Housing activists welcomed the move.

“It is good that steps are being taken to tame the builders,” said Sreedhar Sharma, president, Revathy Foundation that works on housing issues.