Kathmandu, May 11

The Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development has issued a circular to all metropolitan cities, sub-metropolitan cities, municipalities and rural municipalities, directing them to complete record-keeping of old houses and buildings constructed prior to the commencement of the Basic Standards on Settlement Development, Urban Planning and Building Construction, 2015 without any delay.

The local levels are required to accomplish the task within one year from the date of commencement of the standards.

“As the country has already adopted federal system of government, newly formed local levels are strongly urged to update records of all houses and buildings constructed before the commencement of the standards,” read the circular issued by Infrastructure Development Division under the ministry.

The ministry has also directed the local levels to implement the standards, which was endorsed by the Cabinet on August 30, 2015 so as to build resilient communities.

They have been instructed to approve the blueprints of new buildings on the basis of the standards, which require house owners to conclude an agreement with a technician for supervision of the entire construction process.

House owners found bypassing the National Building Code will be asked to demolish illegal structures. If they fail to do so within the given time, the local authorities will demolish the buildings themselves. However, the expenses for the demolition will be borne by the house owners. The Local Self-Governance Act confers power on municipalities and rural municipalities to issue directives to demolish illegally constructed structures.

The basic guideline has also fixed land use percentage. Residential houses built in an area of up to 250 square feet are required to leave 30 per cent open space. In plots with over 250 square feet space, structures have to be built leaving 40 per cent open space.

Local bodies will be obliged to protect public lands by declaring them open spaces. The government has prohibited the use such lands without approval from the concerned authorities.

As many as 83 open spaces have already been designated by the Ministry of Home Affairs for effective humanitarian coordination and response during mega natural disasters, especially earthquakes, while the Kathmandu Valley Development Authority has identified 887 more open spaces, including government, public and private lands and forested areas.

Of the newly-identified open spaces, Kathmandu has 488, Lalitpur 346 and Bhaktapur 53.

The government had tasked Kathmandu Valley Development Authority with the responsibility of protecting and managing identified open spaces for use in the aftermath of natural disasters.Tens of thousands of Valley denizens were forced to camp on the streets, premises of government offices and other risky areas for weeks after the 2015 earthquakes.