DDA proposes to levy 'use conversion charges' for fuel stations on privately-owned land

The DDA on Tuesday approved a proposal to levy 'use conversion charges' for setting up fuel stations on privately-owned land falling in all zones of urban areas, officials said. The proposal will now be sent to the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs for its nod.

The decision was taken during a meeting of the urban body, chaired by Lt Governor Anil Baijal at Raj Niwas here. "The Authority today approved the levy of use conversion charges for setting up fuel stations on privately-owned land falling in all use zones of urban areas, including urban extension areas, in agricultural areas or green belts," the DDA said in a statement.

The CNG stations shall be permitted in underdeveloped recreational areas, with the exception of a ridge or recreational parks, it said. Also, to promote the pollution-free environment, there will be a rebate of 95 percent in case of electric vehicle charging stations, 50 cents for CNG stations and 75 percent for mixed stations (both electric and CNG), the statement said.

The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) Tuesday also approved a proposal to slash additional floor area ratio (FAR) charges for Local Shopping Centre (LSC) and made it equal to the charges for the residential mix-use area and notified streets, the statement said. The 'use conversion charges' for LSCs have also been reduced and are made equal to the 'use conversion charges' of the residential mix-use area and notified streets. The above rates shall remain valid up to June 28, 2020, it said.

The approved proposal will be sent to the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs for its nod, officials said. In other decisions taken by the Authority, it slashed the External Development Charges (EDC) leviable for godowns in Narela at 25 percent, from Rs 3500 per sqm to Rs 875 per sqm on a plot area basis, the DDA said.

A scheme for the involvement of school children and the public in DDA's plantation program was also approved. Under the scheme, each selected school shall be allocated a site or a park close to the institution by the DDA. The allocation of sites shall be for a period of 10-15 years for a particular school.

"In the first year, it is proposed to implement the scheme in 200 schools which are having eco clubs. An amount of Rs 50 lakh is expected to be incurred, i.e. Rs 25,000 per eco-club in a school," the DDA said in a statement. Meanwhile, DDA member and Malviya Nagar MLA Somnath Bharti raised the issue of allotment of land for construction of Mohalla Clinics during the meeting.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, he claimed his submission in the meeting was "based on the response given by the DDA to the Delhi government's health department that since no specific land has been earmarked for Mohalla Clinics in the Master Plan for Delhi 2021, no land can be allotted for these clinics". "I pointed out that mere technical terminology used for the word Mohalla Clinics cannot be the sole ground for rejecting land allotment for Mohalla Clinics," he was quoted as saying in the statement.

"Primary health centers, dispensaries, and other related terms are mentioned in the MPD, and such terminologies can be put in place to allow Delhiites to have access to this important primary health care model," he added. The Lt Governor has referred the matter to the DDA and asked the authority to again look into it, he claimed.