Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

No action against KMBR violators

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The local self-government institutions in Idukki district, mainly Munnar and the adjoining panchayats, have generally restrained themselves from taking punitive action against violation of the Kerala Municipal Building Rules (KMBR) owing to lack of support and cooperation from the Revenue authorities, it is learnt.

The special team designated by the Local Self-Government Department to detect violations of building rules in Munnar and adjacent tourist destinations in the district is understood to have informed the department that corrective measures against violators were being delayed due to political intervention and lack of interest of the Revenue authorities.

The team comprising officials of the Town and Country Planning Department and the Panchayat and Municipal Directorates has gathered evidence about unauthorised constructions in Munnar, Devikulam, Mankulam and other neighbouring areas. It is expected to submit the report to the government soon.

Well before the government enforced the KMBR in grama panchayats all over the State, the rules were in force in Munnar as well as Devikulam and Mankulam carved out of the former. Hence, the department delegated the team to detect violation of the rules.

There were complaints that permits were liberally issued to construct residential and commercial buildings. The team has looked into the breach of rules as well as the technical aspects, including contravention of floor area ratio (FAR), setback norms and the parking space provided in the buildings. Majority of the cases are violation of setback norms. The panchayat officials are understood to have followed the procedure prescribed by the Panchayati Raj Act and issued show-cause notice to those who have constructed buildings in violation of the rules to avoid intervention by the court. But the action in such cases was often confined to issuing notices and stop memo to the violators.

The inspection team is understood to have concluded that further action could not be taken due to political intervention and inaction of the Revenue officials. The stay orders issued by the Tribunal for Local Self-Government Institutions have also been cited as a reason for the inaction.

Official sources told The Hindu that the Local Self-Government Department would move the High Court to vacate the stay orders and seek the cooperation of the Revenue Department to crack down on such cases.

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