MUMBAI:
The state government has cleared the decks for the construction of the 37-storeyed JK House to resume, three years after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) issued a stop-work notice citing various violations, including exceeding FSI.
The Urban Development Department (UDD) has given the project a clean chit, saying it was wrong on the BMC’s part to issue notices to the firm, Raymond — to whom the building belongs — even though it had approved the plans before.
The building on Bhulabhai Desai Road will house the owners of Raymond, the Singhania family. With the UDD clean chit, Raymond executives met BMC commissioner Ajoy Mehta.
“The company representatives presented their side and submitted the relevant documents. I have forwarded this to my officials,” said Mehta.
“We will scrutinise their documents and take the appropriate decision.”
JK House has been mired in controversy since 2012, when the then municipal commissioner Subodh Kumar said the building was violating rules. Mehta’s successor Sitaram Kunte was also harsh on the project and pointed out five irregularities, including a large refuge area and exceeding construction permission.
But the UDD, in a letter last month, said it did not appear that Raymond had misled the BMC or concealed any information from it.
The UDD also said the BMC should not impose in retrospect the National Building Code, which prescribed limits for refuge area in 2012, as the building plans were approved in 2008.
The company now will scale down its construction plans and cut down at least two floors, to comply with the state government directives, sources told HT.
The UDD, however, made clear that the museum planned inside JK House must follow norms that govern other museums in the city.
This means a public trust has to be set up, and the museum must be open to the public.
The state government has cleared the decks for the construction of the 37-storeyed JK House to resume, three years after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) issued a stop-work notice citing various violations, including exceeding FSI.
The Urban Development Department (UDD) has given the project a clean chit, saying it was wrong on the BMC’s part to issue notices to the firm, Raymond — to whom the building belongs — even though it had approved the plans before.
The building on Bhulabhai Desai Road will house the owners of Raymond, the Singhania family. With the UDD clean chit, Raymond executives met BMC commissioner Ajoy Mehta.
“The company representatives presented their side and submitted the relevant documents. I have forwarded this to my officials,” said Mehta.
“We will scrutinise their documents and take the appropriate decision.”
JK House has been mired in controversy since 2012, when the then municipal commissioner Subodh Kumar said the building was violating rules. Mehta’s successor Sitaram Kunte was also harsh on the project and pointed out five irregularities, including a large refuge area and exceeding construction permission.
But the UDD, in a letter last month, said it did not appear that Raymond had misled the BMC or concealed any information from it.
The UDD also said the BMC should not impose in retrospect the National Building Code, which prescribed limits for refuge area in 2012, as the building plans were approved in 2008.
The company now will scale down its construction plans and cut down at least two floors, to comply with the state government directives, sources told HT.
The UDD, however, made clear that the museum planned inside JK House must follow norms that govern other museums in the city.
This means a public trust has to be set up, and the museum must be open to the public.
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