Green limit for high-rise buildings

KOCHI: It was part of the efforts to regulate the increasing number of highrise buildings that the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) issued a fresh set of guidelines towards getting environmental clearance for high-rise buildings in three states, including Kerala.According to the new set of rules, any high-rise building which needs clearance from the municipality or local bodies should be situated in proximity to a fire station.This is to ensure that in case of an emergency, the fire engines reach the building without delay.An earlier set of norms had stated that every highrise building should have sufficient space at the entrance so that at least one fire engine can make its way into the building without hindrance.The Ministry, in its new set of norms, has also stipulated that the road leading from the nearest fire station from the building should have a minimum width to carry two fire engines at the same time.“This will ensure that there will be no block on the road leading to the station,” said environmentalist S Seetharaman.The new set of guidelines also emphasise that the width of the road should be in accordance with the height of the building.According to experts, the minimum building to road ratio is 15m:12m.With the increasing height of the building, the width of the road should also be increased.And to combat casualties during emergencies, the guidelines say that fire-fighting equipment should be available at all spots in the building before the flats are occupied.There is also a demand to conduct mock-drills on a regular basis.No-objection Certificates from the department concerned should be possessed by the owners before and after the construction of the building.According to Kochi-based lawyer Leela Krishna, the newly-formulated guidelines would help put a curb to the rising flats in the state.“Kerala, with its small roads and huge migrant nature, does not demand the need for many high-rise buildings.If a survey is conducted, it can be seen that most of the such buildings are unoccupied,” he said.The set of guidelines has been strongly imposed in Kerala because the Ministry of Environment and Forests had been receiving proposals for environmental clearance to set up high rise buildings on a regular basis from Kerala.“Most of the proposals by the builders may have also not been genuine,” said environmentalist S Seetharaman Norms to help rural growthKochi: District Collector Sheik Pareeth has said the new set of guidelines for high-rise buildings will benefit the district as it would help areas outside the city to develop.“At present, the unregulated setting up of high-rise buildings has led to increased congestion in Kochi.Now, since the norms suggest that wider roads are required in places where high-rise buildings should be set up, builders would prefer to construct buildings in the outskirts where roads are wider,” he said.This, according to the District Collector, will lead to the development of the district as a whole.“Though the Ministry has ensued such orders keeping in mind the security of the occupants, it will in every way contribute to development activities in villages and smaller towns.Setting up high-rise buildings in the outskirts would benefit the occupants too as they will have more accessibility to basic facilities such as better water, sewage treatment etc,” he said.