Gandhinagar: In a marked shift from regulation to facilitation, Gujarat govt is set to overhaul its building and urban development rulebook by replacing the existing “permissible use” regime with an approach of “everything is permitted unless it is expressly prohibited”.In line with this approach, state govt is reviewing CGDCR (Comprehensive General Development Control Regulations) to introduce a negative list of non-permissible use. Govt sources claimed the marked shift will encourage flexible development, improve ease of doing business, attract investment and support sustainable economic growth across the state.A newly drafted CGDCR is expected to be announced within a month and promises to significantly reduce approvals, cut red tape and make urban development more demand-driven.CGDCR is a unified legal framework that governs construction activity, land use planning and urban development across Gujarat’s urban local bodies and development authorities.Officials said instead of specifying what types of development are permitted in every land-use zone, the revised regulations will spell out only what is prohibited. “The revised framework will be based on the principle that everything is permitted unless it is expressly prohibited,” a senior official said. The govt is expected to notify a ‘negative list’ and any development that does not fall within this list will be allowed without requiring cumbersome permissions and multiple no-objection certificates, said a source close to the development.According to officials, the proposed negative list is likely to include development in the vicinity of airports, areas through which underground gas pipelines pass, protected monuments under Archaeological Survey of India, zones where high-rise buildings are restricted and other environmentally or strategically sensitive locations.The last CGDCR was introduced in 2017 to create a uniform and simplified regulatory framework for all urban local bodies and development authorities in Gujarat. While development plans prepared for individual cities identify land-use zones based on local requirements, CGDCR prescribes the types and extent of development permitted in each zone.Officials said the exercise to revise CGDCR is also aligned with the central govt’s `Phase-II Compliance Reduction and Deregulation’ initiative, under which states have been encouraged to simplify legal and administrative procedures in keeping with the vision of “Minimum Govt, Maximum Governance.”
