ISRO app to protect heritage, aid architects

April 29, 2016 12:59 am | Updated 12:59 am IST - NEW DELHI:

Architects and real estate developers who plan to construct buildings close to national monuments can soon download a new mobile app named Smarac Citizen, which will grant them construction permits within a few minutes.

Based on a proposal from the National Monuments Authority (NMA), the app has been developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), containing the maps of 3,686 Centrally-protected monuments across the country.

Earlier, the NMA had to send teams to the areas close to historic monuments, where developers sought construction permits.

The teams had to ensure that permits were granted only to projects beyond 300 metres from the outer boundary of a monument.

‘Process made easy’

“The process — from application for permission to survey — took at least five months,” said Navneet Soni, who heads the NMA .

“But now, we have empowered people with the app, which will help them get permits at the click of a button.”

Apart from easing the process of obtaining construction permits, the app will help the NMA keep a tab on encroachments around monuments.

AAI approval

“The app will tell you how far new constructions are from any particular protected monument,” said Mr. Soni.

“For example, if someone wants to build a skyscraper in front of the Qutub Minar, the app will inform us and we will not let that happen.”

For Anupam Bansal, a Delhi-based planner at Abard Architects that deals with institutional constructions, the app will help decide the height of the buildings according to the air rules set by the Airports Authority.

“It will also give you the elevation — the height of the site with respect to mean sea level. It will help architects not only for the NMA approval, but also for the approval of the Airports Authority of India.”

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