Jammu, March 9 – The Jammu and Kashmir government announced changes to the Unified Building Bye-Laws (UBBL) 2021 on Tuesday, under the provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Development Act, 1970, and the Jammu and Kashmir Municipal Act, 2000.
According to an official statement, "This move aims to promote ease of doing business, rationalize development controls, and digitize approvals."
"These reforms are expected to strengthen compliance across all urban local bodies and development authorities in the Union Territory. The amendments simplify land use regulations, consolidate multiple sub-categories into four broad primary uses, and allow affordable group housing in industrial zones, promoting inclusive land utilization," the statement added.
"Setback norms have been rationalized, and the Commercial Floor Area Ratio (FAR) has been increased up to 400 (subject to norms), thereby increasing development potential," the statement further stated.
"Furthermore, the minimum Right of Way requirement for specified commercial and industrial activities has been reduced from 12 to 6 meters to facilitate economic growth, particularly in smaller urban areas," it added.
"The Jammu and Kashmir government has also launched an online building permission and change of land use portal with Auto-DCR technology, introducing a fully digital, rule-based, and time-bound system for processing building permissions across all urban local bodies and development authorities in the Union Territory."
"Under this new framework, building plans submitted online are automatically scrutinized by the system against the provisions of the UBBL, Master Plans, Zonal Plans, and applicable development controls."
"The software generates instant compliance reports identifying any deviations, thereby ensuring transparency and uniform interpretation of regulations," the statement said.
"The portal integrates Change of Land Use with Building Permission, reducing timelines from 60-90 days to 30 days. The portal allows self-certification and automatic approval for low-risk buildings, empowering registered architects and engineers to certify compliance with building norms."
"The system ensures transparency, uniform interpretation of regulations, and eliminates subjectivity. The Auto Scrutiny Portal also facilitates online fee calculation, digital payment, real-time application tracking, downloadable approvals, and a digital record repository."
"Applicants can monitor the status of their cases at every stage, ensuring complete transparency. The amendments also introduce provisions for energy efficiency and environmental compliance, including Eco Niwas Samhita norms, with incentive-based benefits such as additional FAR and fast-track approvals," the statement concluded.
"These comprehensive amendments mark a transition towards transparent, technology-driven, and compliance-oriented urban governance, ensuring planned, sustainable, and citizen-centric development across Jammu and Kashmir. The URL of the revamped portal is https://obps.jk.gov.in," the statement said.