VIJAYAWADA: To streamline town planning department in urban civic bodies, the state govt has decided to launch an online grievance redressal cell.
The move comes in the wake of alleged reluctance on the part of officials in clearing building plans despite submission of required documents by applicants.
Applicants can send their plans to a WhatsApp number as well as email for clearance.
Municipal administration and urban development minister Dr P Narayana held talks with private builders and real estate developers in the last four months. Many builders complained about delay in clearance of building plans by civic bodies.
They said town planning departments were putting the plans on hold for want of bribes.
The minister reviewed the situation with the town planning chiefs and municipal commissioners. The minister said that no building plans and layout permissions should be kept on hold without any valid reason. He observed that delay in giving green signal to legal projects is the reason for mushrooming of illegal buildings and unauthorized layouts.
He directed the officials to mend their ways to avoid facing disciplinary action. The municipal administration department constituted a committee to suggest remedies to overcome delays in clearance of building plans in the municipal and urban development authorities.
Meanwhile, state govt wants to integrate all portals of municipal administration to bring transparency to the system. The govt has set deadlines for clearance of building plans at each level of officer from town planning officer to chief planning officer.
Builders have also been allowed to go ahead with construction in case the plan was not released in the stipulated timeline. The minister says that giving a big push to construction activity is vital for overall development.
Sources said that the minister is not completely happy with developments in the town planning wing as he continues to receive complaints from builders despite his repeated directives to officials.
“Construction sector particularly in urban areas is very crucial to turn around the growth story. We can accelerate the growth by allowing private builders to complete their projects as per their plans. Delays will cripple finances of all-builders, purchasers and also govt,” said the minister.
