Consumer organisation, Coimbatore Consumer Cause, has written to the Chief Minister seeking exemption from the Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules for small commercial buildings.
In his letter, organisation’s Secretary K. Kathirmathiyon said the State Government had framed the Rules with the objective of ensuring that all big buildings were constructed with adequate parking space, fire safety provisions and set back area to have a planned growth.
In the Rules, the government had exempted residential buildings that measured not more than 12m and had not more than three dwelling units or measured not more than 750 sq.m.It had also exempted all industrial buildings.While those were to be welcomed, it must be pointed out that the government had not given exemption to other small buildings.
The absence of exemption had affected commercial buildings that were attached to residential buildings and those that housed paan shops, tea stalls and tailoring shops.It had also affected temporary structures as the absence of exemption had forced their owners to obtain building completion certificate to get power or water connection, which was not practically possible.
In the absence of exemption and without a way to get the completion certificate, hundreds of people were suffering and they were most entrepreneurs running small commercial establishments.
The government should provide exemption to small commercial buildings/structures as it had given to small residential buildings and industrial buildings, Mr. Kathirmathiyon said and sought exemption to other small buildings measuring up to 1,000 sq.ft. in a single structure.
Furthermore, the government should amend the Rules in such a way that in respect of exempted residential buildings it increased the number of dwelling units from three to four as building owners constructed two houses on the first floor if there were two on the ground floor, he said and added that the height restriction of 12m and area restriction of 750 sq.m. should be kept intact.
