6 days Ago By C Shivakumar
CHENNAI: The master plan for 126 sq.km Chennai Outer Ring Road may be completed by end of December or early next year, said the consultancy that won the contract for preparing a detailed development plan for the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority. Prabhakar Kumar, business head - government services, Delhi-based Rudrabhishek Enterprises Private Limited (REPL), told TNIE that the company has identified four growth nodes – Minjur, Red Hills, Poonamallee and Vandalur.
The nodes have varied characteristics such as large availability of land to being eco-sensitive in nature. “Nature should not be disturbed because some areas are prone to waterlogging and flooding. So, we tried to plan in a way that waterbodies and eco-sensitive areas are conserved.
Development activity has to be restricted in these places. Other zones, which have more potential for development, can be developed,” said Kumar, whose firm has bagged the Rs 2.9 crore contract.
Besides preparing the development plan, the objective of the consultant is to identify and delineate suitable areas for implementing the Land Pooling Area Development Scheme (LAPDS) and to prepare an economic development plan along the ORR growth corridor. ORR is being conceived by the government as a high-growth corridor with sustainable levels of density. It will attract business and industrial activities from in and around Chennai due to better infrastructure and higher floor space index (FSI), enabling the supply of more floor space at cheaper rates and acting as a new agglomeration.
“We are looking at an average FSI of 4 to 5. The nodes, either mixed or multimodal, will cater to commercial, industrial and residential uses,” said Kumar. On the delay in preparing the master plan, Kumar said, “If you take the history of approval or finalisation of master plans in India, it takes at least two years.
It involves various steps, including stakeholder meetings. As it is a legal document, it requires approval at various levels,” he said..
