CHANDIGARH: On Tuesday, the Punjab cabinet approved the Punjab Unified Building Rules, 2025, which will permit the construction of stilt-plus-four floors in newly developed urban sectors.
This decision was made during a council of ministers meeting led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.
According to officials, those owning a plot of at least 250 square yards will be eligible to construct stilt-plus-four floors in urban areas.
A representative from the Chief Minister’s office stated that the new rules aim to establish a comprehensive and standardized framework for building and development across the state.
These regulations will apply uniformly to both the housing and urban development department and the local government department, ensuring consistency in approvals and enforcement.
The primary reforms target improving the ease of doing business, optimizing land use, and promoting vertical urban growth.
The updated rules allow for an increase in the maximum height for low-rise buildings from 15 meters to 21 meters, while also enabling third-party self-certification for plan approval and project completion.
Further, they limit the scrutiny for high-rise projects to critical safety parameters, reducing delays and enabling increased ground coverage and Floor Area Ratio (FAR) on a payment basis, while easing parking, setback, and open space requirements.
The regulations also integrate provisions for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), affordable housing, and rental housing into a single framework, along with introducing new categories like mixed land use and multi-level parking to meet contemporary urban demands.
Additionally, the cabinet approved the Punjab Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Counseling and Rehabilitation Centres Rules, 2025, which replace the 2011 rules and the 2020 amendments to enhance the regulation of de-addiction and rehabilitation centers statewide.
These new rules address the limitations of the earlier regulations, overseeing 36 government-run and 177 licensed private de-addiction centers, as well as Outpatient Opioid Assisted Treatment (OOAT) clinics.
A stipulation has been made that no private individual can operate more than five drug rehabilitation centers, as many currently manage over 20.
Please note that these rules will bolster licensing, renewal, and inspection processes, implementing biometric attendance and online data reporting, alongside penalties for non-compliance, record-keeping standards, and regulations for the secure and transparent distribution of buprenorphine-naloxone for opioid dependence treatment.
In other decisions, the cabinet approved the establishment of a new sub-tehsil, Ludhiana (North), to enhance administrative efficiency and service accessibility in Ludhiana district’s urban regions.
This initiative will expedite mutation and registry processes for high-density urban villages, alleviate congestion in Ludhiana (East and West) tehsils, and maximize existing infrastructure for better citizen convenience.
The cabinet also sanctioned the transformation of the Barnala municipal council into a municipal corporation to facilitate planned urban growth, enhance civic infrastructure, and ensure effective governance in the rapidly growing district headquarters city.
This change aims to strengthen urban governance, improve infrastructure, and elevate service delivery and quality of life for the residents.
Additionally, the cabinet approved a reform to the stamp duty and registration fees for hypothecation and equitable mortgage materials by amending the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 (Punjab) and Registration Fee Rules, in a progressive move to alleviate the financial burden on industries.
This alteration seeks to boost ease of doing business, facilitate access to affordable credit, and improve Punjab’s overall competitiveness in the economic landscape.
The cabinet also approved leasing approximately four acres of land for establishing a 100-bed ESI hospital in Dera Bassi.
Currently, employees in Dera Bassi and surrounding industrial zones depend on ESI facilities in Ludhiana, Mohali, and Chandigarh, which are insufficient to satisfy the increasing healthcare demands.
Moreover, the cabinet has greenlighted the hiring of 14 Group-A, 16 Group-B, and 80 Group-C posts in the Punjab Sports Medical Cadre to bolster sports medical support across various districts.
This will enhance injury management, recovery, and overall performance of athletes, while also promoting scientific development in sports aligned with national standards.
These professionals will be positioned in districts like Patiala, Sangrur, Bathinda, Faridkot, Fazilka, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, SAS Nagar, Rupnagar, and Hoshiarpur, locations with higher numbers of athletes.
