Amid the large scale damage to public property caused by frequent natural disasters in the hill state, the Himachal Pradesh government has taken two critical decisions to ensure the safety of buildings.
Firstly, all buildings constructed should compulsorily get their safety audit done. Secondly, all government and private buildings that will be constructed in every city and village from now on will be as per the geographical conditions there.
The government has also come up with an amendment in the Himachal Pradesh Town and Country Planning Act to make new rules for building construction. This has been passed in the ongoing monsoon session of the Assembly. The Town and Country Planning Department will soon draft the rules and conditions on this legislation.
Town and Country Planning Minister Rajesh Dharmani said that in view of natural disasters, the existing Town and Country Planning Act has been amended. After passing the amendment Bill, now the next task is to make the Rules, he said adding that after conducting a safety audit, it will be ascertained which buildings are safe. The buildings that are found unsafe will be retrofitted, he said.
Dharmani said that Himachal Pradesh is very sensitive in terms of natural disasters and the biggest danger is from earthquakes. Hence, from now on all buildings will be made earthquake resistant.
Dharmani said that many buildings have been built without approval outside the non-planning area. Rules have been flouted at many places. In rural areas, approvals have to be taken to construct anything over one thousand square meters or any multi-storeyed building.
The Minister said that some suggestions that have come from Chief Parliamentary Secretary Ashish Butel and BJP MLA Balveer Verma on this will be accepted. The Department will now make Rules and conditions following which objections and suggestions will be sought from the general public.
Dharmani said that it will be mandatory to have all relevant reports related to building construction including structure design for every building that will be constructed from now on. The Rules for construction of building will also be different for every city in the state.
It should be noted that the state government has already notified the Rules pertaining to construction of buildings on the banks of rivers and drains. Buildings can be constructed seven meters away from the river and five meters away from the drains. Changes in these rules can be brought about if needed. Earlier in 2023, heavy rains had ravaged the state leading to large scale destruction of public property.
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