Construction Permits
Fast Tracking Ease of Doing Business
No. Procedure
1 Submit application and design plans and pay scrutiny fee
2 Receive site inspection from Building Proposal Office
3 Apply for no-objection certificate (NOC) from Tree Authority
Apply for no-objection certificate (NOC) from Storm Water and Drain
4
Department
5 Apply for no-objection certificate (NOC) from Sewerage Department
Apply for no-objection certificate (NOC )from the Hydraulic Engineer
6
Department (water supply)
7 Receive inspection from Tree Authority
8 Receive inspection from Storm Water and Drain Department
9 Receive inspection from Sewerage Department
10 Receive inspection from the Hydraulic Engineer Department (water supply)
11 Obtain NOC from Tree Authority
12 Obtain NOC from the Storm Water and Drain Department
13 Obtain NOC from Sewerage Department
14 Obtain NOC from Hydraulic Engineer Department (water supply)
15 Request and obtain NOC from Electric Department
16 Request and obtain NOC from Traffic & Coordination Department
17 Request and obtain NOC from Chief Fire Office
18 Obtain Intimation of Disapproval and pay fees
Obtain plinth commencement certificate from sub-engineer and pay
19
development charges
20 Request and receive inspection of plinth
21 Request and obtain further commencement certificate
22 Request completion NOC from the Storm Water and Drain Department
23 Request completion NOC from the Sewerage Department
24 Apply for provisional water connection from Hydraulic Engineer
25 Request completion NOC from Traffic & Coordination Department
26 Request completion NOC from Chief Fire Office
27 Receive inspection from Storm Water and Drain Department
28 Receive inspection from Sewerage Department
29 Obtain water connection from Hydraulic Engineer
30 Receive inspection from Traffic & Coordination Department
31 Receive inspection from Chief Fire Office
32 Obtain completion NOC from Storm Water and Drain Department
33 Obtain completion NOC from Sewerage Department
34 Obtain the completion NOC from Traffic & Coordination Department
35 Obtain the completion NOC from Chief Fire Office
Submit letter stating completion of building works to obtain occupancy
36
certificate and certificate of completion
37 Receive final inspection from Building Proposal Office
38 Obtain occupancy certificate from Building Proposal Office (sub-engineer)
39 Obtain final NOC from Hydraulic Engineer (Water) Department
40 Obtain completion certificate
Simplifying and expediting
Construction Permits
Mumbai has swung into action quickly, cutting down the number
of approvals and clearances from 119 to 58. Parallel processing
of approvals has been enabled so that the overall time period is
reduced from over 365 days to 60 days flat. Number of payment
windows for various permits have been collapsed from 89 to 1.
Self certification for some services and certification by
consultants for MEP works have been permitted now.
These measures will result in expeditious approvals for new
projects, reflecting an improvement in the ease of doing
business, thus boosting investor confidence.
India’s overall rank in ease of doing business has risen to 130
in the latest World Bank report. However, with the rank of
183, India is at the bottom of the list in respect of dealing
with construction permits. There are 40 procedural steps in
the report for Mumbai as listed in the Table.
In contrast, the average number of procedures for dealing
with construction permits in high income countries is only 12
and the average time period required is also much less. India
has lot to do to reduce the procedures and time required for
getting construction permits. The processes listed by the
World Bank pertain to construction permits only and do not
cover a number of other approvals and clearances to be
secured for development of an urban property.
Soon after the report was published by the World Bank, the
Central Government decided to come out with necessary
notifications for streamlining approvals for construction
projects in urban areas so as to enable time bound and hassle
free clearances for projects.
The Ministry of Environment and Forests & Climate Change
has committed to simplify the process for according
Environmental Clearances including by way of regulations at
State or Local Body level so that the Ministry need not be
approached for such clearances.
Construction projects near Airports require clearance of Civil
Aviation Ministry and to make the process hassle-free, Colour
Coded Zoning Maps of Airport areas have been uploaded on
the website enabling urban local bodies to accord approvals
without the applicants going to the Ministry of Civil Aviation.
Where required, NOC process has been made online to
minimize human interface and to expedite the clearance.
Similarly, the Ministry of Culture has come out with an online
approval system for clearances near monuments and
heritage areas. The Ministry of Defence is coming out with
similar measures such as zoning based guidelines and time
bound clearances.
The National Building Code is being updated to enable quick
approvals with minimum human interface. Model Building
Bye-laws have been prepared by the Ministry of Urban
Development incorporating the simplified guidelines of the
Ministry of Environment and Forests.
The above steps mark a major shift towards a risk based
approval system that places the onus on the applicant for
any violation of undertaking given in respect of compliance
with guidelines.
With the Central Government taking these measures in
quick time, the onus has shifted to the State Governments
and the local bodies for simplifying the procedure in
obtaining construction permits.
In an era of competitive federalism, every State has to
compete in attracting investment and it is essential in this
context to create a favourable ecosystem for businesses to
flourish. Mumbai is setting the benchmark in improving the
business environment for the rest of India to follow.