Web portal to facilitate construction industry

LAHORE:To facilitate the construction sector as well as citizens on the direction of Prime Minister Imran Khan, Metropolitan Corporation Lahore (MCL) ensured approvals by a time-bound processes through one window operations.

Presently, in Punjab, multiple agencies are dealing the process of building plan approvals and there is no links between these agencies, which included Metropolitan and Municipal Corporations, Municipal, Town and Tehsil Committees, LDA, RDA, FDA, MDA, GDA, BDA, DDA, SDA, FMDA and Punjab Housing and Town Planning Agency (PHATA).

Independent applications by citizens are filed with different agencies and then separate follow-ups occurred due to lack of a single platform. The federal government has proposed all approvals (layout plans, NOCs, NDCs, etc) within 30 days through one window portal /regime.

Syed Ali Bukhari, Chief Officer MCL, while talking with The News said that one window portal would be linked with all approving authorities. This portal will contain complete details of requirements needed for all approvals/NOCs. He said on filing of the application, all approvals will be processed concurrently through the one window portal and the applicant should not be required to approach each NOC approving authority/department separately.

He explained that responsibility of issuing the final approval within 30 days would rest with the building plan approving authority which would also lay down appropriate timelines for issuance of NOCs by all other authorities/departments concerned.

He said four broad categories for approving maps were identified, which included individual constructions (residential, commercial, warehouses / industrial & petrol pumps) and its mapping would be approved in 30 working days. Second step is completion certificate, which will be issued in 30 working days, 3rd is land use conversions, which will be completed in 45 working days and the 4th will be private housing schemes and this will be completed within 60 to 75 working days.

In provincial metropolis, plan approvals is done by LDA and in case of residential (any plot size) 14 different documents are needed, in case of low rise (up to 50 feet) commercial, industrial, public building the agencies needed to give 13 different documents are LDA, HLDC, Tepa and Wasa, in case of high-rise (Above 50 feet) commercial, industrial and public building, the agencies included LDA, HLDC, Tepa, Wasa, EPA, Civil Defence and Civil Aviation are involved in issuance of 20 different types of documents.

Ali Bukhari said that under the proposed framework, category-wise checklist of documents, fee structures, timelines and helpline number, etc will be uploaded on Web Portal through Mobile App and an electronic receipt will be issued to the applicant. He revealed that grievance redress committees are proposed at divisional level to process and resolve grievances/complaints.

Talking about the status of web portal, he said detailed checklists of documents required, timelines, steps involved and responsible officers (with timeline of each) for each category, including private housing schemes has been prepared and provided to PITB. Work on portal development was initiated by the PITB.

A supervisory committee was also made to check and monitor the pace of work and proper functioning of the new system consisting of various departments. TORs of committee included review of legal mechanism and existing processes in Local Government, development authorities and PHATA for granting approval (layout plans, NOCs, NDCs, etc.) to individual construction requests as well as to private housing schemes / land sub-division, to identify bottlenecks which result in delays in the approval processes, to propose a uniform framework for processing requests / granting approvals in the shortest possible time, to facilitate in development of an all encompassing portal by PITB on the subject which may translate the proposed timelines into self-generated automated approvals, if deemed necessary and to suggest composition of grievance redress committees in order to process and resolve complaints / grievances.

Under the new regime, checklist for submission of building plan for residential (up to 4-storey) included application on Form BB-1(Notice/Permission to Build) along with Form BB-3(material specifications) and Form BB-4(Building specifications), title documents/certified copy of property ownership documents such as registered title deed or fresh Fard Malkiat or PTD/PTO or allotment letter of approved housing scheme as issued by authority concerned (whichever applicable) of the under reference property, attested copy of CNIC of the applicant and power of attorney, (wherever applicable), undertaking on Stamp Paper of Rs500 denomination to the effect that applicant would be responsible for any damage caused to life or limb of any person or any property or municipal & utility services during construction of building (BB-5), undertaking on stamp paper of Rs100 denomination to the effect that the proposed building plan is conforming to the land-use provisions of the applicable master plan/land-use plan and building & zoning bye-laws and drainage plan.

If approval requires prior clearance from high-level design committee, additional 21 copies of proposed building plan and multi-media presentation, if approval requires prior clearance of special committee,(Lahore only) submission of additional 18 copies of proposed building plan and multi-media presentation, five copies of proposed building plans on blue prints along with one copy on cloth comprising section, elevation, plan, site plan and block plan, one copy of proposed building plan on A-4 size for scanning at one window, signature of the owner and of the power of attorney (if applicable) and registered architect of the project on proposed building plan and attached forms, valid NOC from CAA/PAF wherever applicable, application for NOC from the archeology department in case of special premises declared under Punjab Special Premises (Preservations) Ordinance, 1985. (If applicable) and landscape plan (if property measuring 4-kanal and above).

Furthermore under the new regime, checklist for submission of building plan for commercial (up to 4-storey ie G +3) included application on Form BB-1(Notice/Permission to Build) along with Form BB-3(material specification) and Form BB-4(building specification), title documents/certified copy of property ownership documents such as registered title deed or fresh Fard Malkiat or PTD/PTO or allotment letter of approved housing scheme as issued by authority concerned (whichever applicable) of the under reference property, attested copy of CNIC of the applicant and of the power of attorney, (wherever applicable), undertaking on stamp paper of Rs500 denomination to the effect that applicant would be responsible for any damage caused to life or limb of any person or any property or municipal & utility services during construction of building (BB-5), undertaking on stamp paper of Rs100 denomination to the effect that the proposed building plan is conforming to the land-use provisions of the applicable master plan/land-use plan and building & zoning bye-laws, five copies of proposed building plans on blue prints along with one copy on cloth comprising section, elevation, plan, site plan and block plan, landscape plan (if property measuring 4-kanal and above), one copy of proposed building plan on A-4 size for scanning at one window, signature of the owner and the power of Attorney (if applicable) and registered architect of the project on proposed building plan and attached forms, valid NOC from CAA/PAF wherever applicable. If approval requires prior clearance from high level design committee, additional 21 copies of proposed building plan and multi-media presentation, if approval requires prior clearance of special committee, (Lahore only) submission of additional 18 copies of proposed building plan and multi-media presentation, application for NOC from the archeology department in case of special premises declared under Punjab Special Premises (Preservations) Ordinance, 1985 (if applicable), application for NOC from Traffic Engineering & Planning Agency/Traffic Police/concerned agency (for area of 4-kanal and above), drainage plan and application for NOC from EPA (in case of hotels, hospitals, industrial building, urban development project and complex more than 20-kanal).

MCL CO Ali Bukhari said that after being initiated a uniform system and regime will be introduced for all primary agencies, amendments in rules, where required, to ease the processes will be done by the departments according to the new construction ordinance. Mean registration of architects will be completed and online processing of actual maps will be issued.