BDA Asks Commercial Buildings, Multiplexes & Apartments to Stop Charging Parking Fees from Visitors

Bhubaneswar: The Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) has issued an order directing various establishments such as commercial buildings, shopping malls, multiplexes and apartments to stop charging parking fees from visitors on the premises.

The order will come into force with immediate effect, the BDA said.

“It has come to the notice of the BDA that different shopping malls, multiplexes and apartments are imposing parking charges/fees. This is not consistent with the provisions of the BDA (P&BS) regulations as well as the approved building plan and the developers/owners are hereby directed to stop the illegal practice of charging parking fees from the visitors, immediately,” the order reads.

The BDA (Planning & Building Standards) Regulations, 2018 prescribes that mandatory off-street parking shall be provided in different establishments such as commercial buildings, shopping malls, multiplexes, hospitals, apartments and housing projects, etc.

“It has come to the notice of BDA that the parking area shown in the approved building plan is being used for purposes other than parking of vehicles in some of such buildings. Such misuse of parking is resulting in on-street parking and thereby adversely affecting the traffic movement on the public road”, the order said.

The sub-regulation (7) of regulation 37 of the aforesaid regulations prescribes that, the misuse of the parking spaces shall be summarily removed or demolished by the Authority, it added.

“It is therefore directed to all property owners to abide by the mandatory off-street parking provisions in the approved building plan and any deviations in the parking provisions shall be restored by the property owners as per the provisions of approved building plan within 30 days from the date of issue of this notice”.

BDA shall take strict action on such developers who are charging such illegal parking fees towards the parking spaces already exempted from calculation of FAR under the provisions of BDA (Planning & Building Standards) Regulations, 2018, it further said.