After a three-month sample survey of 8,320 buildings in municipal corporations and Nagar Palika, the Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (AUDA) concluded that nearly 35% of the structures surveyed do not have a building permit (BU) in Gujarat.
Causes include the addition of floors, the change of use of buildings and jurisdiction issues.
If punitive measures were taken for buildings without the BU kink, this would lead to large-scale demolition. In its advice to the state government, the urban development department said an ordinance could be issued with certain conditions for property owners to overcome this legal barrier.