With authorities going tough against illegal construction in the summer capital Srinagar, more and more people are now applying for permission for construction of residential and commercial structures in the city. The trend has led to a rise in revenue realisation for the government.
The official data accessed by Greater Kashmir revealed that in 2016-17 only 567 persons had applied for permission to construct residential houses.
This number went up to 911 in 2017- and in the ongoing year the number of applications received till 28 February has been 972 so far.
Likewise during the three years the number of applicants, seeking permission for construction of commercial building has gone up from 73 in 2016-17 to 146 in 2018-19.
Srinagar Municipal Corporation is responsible for issuing permission for all kind of constructions within municipal limits of Srinagar city.
An official said the rise in number of application has also seen a jump in revenue realisation for the state government. In 2018-19, the revenue realisation, as per official records, was 9.69 crore up to 28 February 2019. This revenue realized was 4.89 core in 2017-18 and 3.81 in 2016-17.
An official said more people were applying now for permissions than trying to raise illegal structures. “One of the major reasons is easing of few rules and special demolition drives. These initiatives have acted as deterrent against illegal construction,” he said.
In the past the High Court has several times taken cognizance of the issue of unauthorized constructions and directed authorities to act tough against violators.