The Jharkhand government has formed a high-level committee to prepare a draft for regularisation of unauthorised construction in urban areas.

The committee was formed on Friday following chief minister Hemant Soren’s instruction after a meeting with a delegation of the Federation of Jharkhand Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FJCCI) on Thursday.

“The state urban development and housing department has issued a notification for the formation of a ten-member inter-departmental high level committee which will study and prepare a draft for regularising the unauthorised construction done in urban areas of the state,” said state urban development principal secretary Vinay Kumar Choubey who incidentally is also the secretary to the chief minister.

According to the notification the committee will study the orders/plans of various states in this regard.

“The committee, if required, will study the ordinances and plans made by various states to regularise unauthorised residential construction.

The high level committee has already prepared a draft of ‘Scheme for regularization of unauthorised residential construction-2022’ keeping in view the local parameters of the state of Jharkhand,” read a statement issued by the information and publicity department Jharkhand.

In this regard, the chairperson and members of the committee may also visit as needed other states, so that the special aspects obtained after studying the ways to actually affect the plan can be incorporated in the draft of the plan.

The draft after being finalised will be sent to the state cabinet for its nod and thereafter be placed in the state Assembly for an ordinance and then placed before governor for a final consent before being implemented.

“Owners of unauthorised construction can get it regularised by paying a one-time impact fee. The collected Impact Fee will be kept as Infrastructure Development Fund to be used for strengthening infrastructure facilities, for erecting parking facilities and for environmental correction,” said a member of the high level committee.

“Unauthorised construction which is not in consonance with fire safety laws, done on government land, water body, playground earmarked for schools, on land which is marked for public purpose etc. cannot be regularised under the provisions of the draft policy. Also, construction done on various public utilities like water disposal, electric line, gas line etc. too cannot be regularised,” the member added.

According to FJCCI president Kishore Mantri, there are over five lakhs such unauthorised construction comprising both residential and commercial plots in the state which will benefit from the decision.

Drunk cops held in Bihar

Buxar: An assistant jailer of Buxar open jail in Bihar and a police constable were arrested after they were found drunk on Saturday in violation of the prohibition which is in place in the state for over six years, police said.

It is suspected the two consumed liquor in Uttar Pradesh and then entered Bihar, a police officer said. Buxar is on the border of the two states.

“The anti-liquor task force of Bihar arrested two persons on Saturday near the Bihar-UP border in Buxar on charges of flouting the ban on sale and consumption of alcohol that has been in force in the state. The accused revealed their identity during interrogation,” said Dinesh Kumar Malakar, the station house officer of Buxar city police station.

The duo were sent for medical examination to the district hospital where it was confirmed that they had consumed liquor, he added.

The Bihar government had banned the manufacture, trade, storage, transportation, sale, consumption of liquor on April 5, 2016.

PTI