The master plan of the Kochi Corporation is likely to be notified in a couple of days.
The Principal Secretary, Local Self-Government department, is understood to have approved the vision document for Kochi that prescribes the development course the coastal city will take during the next 20 years. The State government will have to issue an order notifying the master plan.
Once the Government Order is issued, the master plan will come into force. Only those development activities prescribed in the vision document in specified zones can be undertaken in the city with the notification of the plan. The document was also expected to give direction to the future growth of the city in a structured manner and curb haphazard development, said urban planners.
The document will define the development path for the city till 2040.
The preparation of the master plan was made a prerequisite for availing funds under various Central projects, including the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme. The Kochi Corporation utilised funds from the Mission to prepare the vision document. The city also has plans to take the lead in preparing such a document for the Kochi agglomeration, which includes the neighbouring local bodies, according to civic administrators.
The city administration had carried out extensive public consultations before finalising the document. The draft plan was released in the public domain on April 25 last year to elicit views about the document. Later, the civic authorities scrutinised 173 suggestions and complaints that they received and incorporated the legally and technically feasible ones into the document.
The document was also discussed in the working groups of the civic body. Traders, professional bodies, government agencies, and builders were also consulted. Special sessions were held to discuss the document with MLAs and MPs from the city area.
The Corporation had also constituted a master plan committee to coordinate the process.
