CHANDIGARH: The Chandigarh administration is set to reinstate the January 3, 2023 notification regarding the regularization of need-based modifications, bringing significant relief to over 3.5 lakh residents living in approximately 66,000 Chandigarh Housing Board (CHB) homes.
This notification was put on hold following a Supreme Court ruling on January 10, 2023. During a press briefing at the UT secretariat in Sector 9 on Friday, Chief Secretary H. Rajesh Prasad announced that a new notification will be issued by the end of January, allowing for the regularization of modifications, subject to applicable fees. He mentioned that the relaxations and exemptions granted in the previous notification would largely be retained, alongside some new provisions.
“Compoundable violations will be permitted, but allottees must adhere to statutory rules and regulations, especially concerning structural safety, fire safety standards, and other mandatory requirements,” Prasad stated.
An 11-member committee, led by the UT estate secretary, is currently reviewing the 2023 notification. The committee is expected to deliver its report by the end of January, after which it will be submitted to UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria for approval.
Significant exemptions in the 2023 notification include permission for 10-foot-wide gates, with the condition that no gates face V-3 and V-4 roads. The revised draft may also consider allowing gates that do face these roads in CHB neighborhoods in Sectors 29, 30, and others.
Other proposed provisions encompass approvals for installing grills or glazing on balconies and verandas; accommodating a 39×39-inch cut-out in communal areas; increasing the main gate’s width to 12 feet and height to 6 feet; lowering window sills up to four inches below the floor level; and removing internal walls up to 4.5 inches thick, along with thicker walls in independent homes.
The notification also covers allowing enclosures in corridor areas for HIG category houses in Sector 45, the use of polycarbonate sheets or fiberglass coverings, extending balconies up to 3 feet, and projections of up to 6 inches above windows and doors. Moreover, permissions for installing elevators, shifting gates from side to front boundary walls, and constructing roofs over parking spaces are included for specific HIG categories in sectors 45 and 39-B.
Further relaxations pertain to the installation of grills on boundary walls, tiling in flats and standalone houses, and setting up temporary car sheds with steel pipe frames.
