Govt To Soon Release Code For Green Structures

After dangling a carrot in front of developers and citizens to promote environment-friendly buildings, the state government seems to have yanked it away for now.

Mumbai: The state government might retain the special planning authority (SPA) status granted to Lavasa with some riders.

Increasing concretization and loss of greenery have led to a dwindling of the city's butterfly population. But now, a group of schoolchildren, as part of a community initiative, is working to bring the colourful insects back to town.

The plan is to place nectar-rich plants like lantanas, which attract butterflies, in public parks and gardens. This is aimed at providing a conducive environment for different species of butterflies to thrive, said Dr Puja Sukhija, executive director of the NGO Organisation of Aware Saviours in Society (OASIS), which is involving schoolchildren in the 'Bring Back Butterflies' project.

Mumbai: The state government has decided to permit use of no-development zones (NDZs) for industrial, commercial and residential activity in the exit policy for special economic zones (SEZs).

A basic floor space index (FSI) of 0.5 on the gross area will be permitted in NDZ areas. As an exit route, the state’s new industrial policy permits conversion of denotified SEZs more than 100 acres to integrated industrial areas (IIAs).

In a boost to planned development around Mumbai and other cities, the legislative council on Wednesday unanimously approved a Bill for revision in town planning norms.