The Gazetteers Department

THE MAHARASHTRA STATE HAS AN INDEPENDENT "TOWN PLANNING AND VALUATION DEPARTMENT" under the administrative control of the Urban Development and Public Health Department. This department came into existence in 1914 with the Consulting Surveyor to Government as its head. The department, as its very name indicates, principally deals with two important subjects, viz., Town Planning and Valuation of Real Property.

Town Planning.

The duties and functions of this department as stipulated by Government are described below: (1) Educating the municipalities regarding the advantages of town planning and preparation of development plans and town planning schemes under the Bombay Town Planning Act, 1954. (2) Advising the municipalities in the selection of suitable areas for preparation of town planning schemes. (3) Giving the required assistance to the municipalities in the preparation of development plans and town planning schemes in the shape of advice as well as loan of the services of technical assistants for the preparation of draft town planning schemes. (4) To perform the duties of the Town Planning Officer when so appointed by Government, to scrutinise building permission cases, to tender advice to the Board of Appeal and to draw up the final schemes. (5) To issue certificate of tenure and title to the owners of lands included in town planning schemes. (6) To advise Government on all matters regarding town and country planning. (7) To advise and prepare town development, improvement, extension and slum clearance schemes under the Municipal Acts. (8) To prepare development schemes or layouts of lands belonging to Government, co-operative housing societies and private bodies with the sanction of Government. (9) To advise officers concern ed in respect of village planning and preparation of layouts for model villages, etc. (10) To advise Government on housing, slum clearance, regional planning and prevention of ribbon development and legislation regarding the same. (11) To prepare type designs for the housing of the middle and poorer classes including Harijans. (12) To scrutinise miscellaneous building permission cases and layouts received from the Collectors and recommend suitable building regulations for adoption in the areas concerned.

The Consulting Surveyor to Government is the chief expert adviser to Government on this subject and his duties under this heading include: (1) Valuation of agricultural and non-agricultrural lands and properties in towns and villages belonging to Government and intended for the purposes of sale or lease. (2) Valuation of Government properties for purposes of rating under the Municipal Acts. (3) Valuations for miscellaneous purposes such as cantonment leases, probate or stamp duty, etc. (4) Valuations for the purposes of fixing standard rates of non-agricultural assessment and prescribing zones of values in all villages and rising localities in the vicinity of important and growing towns. (5) Valuations for the purposes of fixing standard rents of ground and values of land in respect of lands in cantonments. (6) Scrutiny of awards of compensation (as received from Government). (7) Supplying trained technical assistants to work as Special Land Acquisition Officers in important towns where the land acqusition work is of a very important and responsible nature. (8) Giving expert evidence when called upon to do so in District Courts and High Court when appeals are lodged against awards of compensation under the Land Acquisition Act. (9) Undertaking valuation work on behalf of railways and other departments of the Central Government and private bodies with the sanction of Government on payment of fees. etc.

Miscellaneous Duties.

The miscellaneous duties of this department are as given below: (1) To advise the various heads of departments of Government in the selection of sites required for public purpose. (2) To see that all town planning schemes or layout schemes sanctioned by Government have been properly executed within a reasonable period as fixed in the schemes. (3) To advise Government as regards interpretation, amendment or addition to the Bombay Town Planning Act, or rules thereunder.

Organisation.

The department, as stated above, was started in 1914 with the Consulting Surveyor to Government as its head who was later on assisted by one Assistant Consulting Surveyor to Government, one Deputy Assistant Consulting Surveyor to Government and two senior assistants together with the requisite staff. As the activities of this department increased, these assistants had to posted at prominent places in the State to attend to the work of Town and Country Planning which is very essentially required in and around towns and cities. There has been tremendous increase in the activities of this department in recent years with the consequential increase in the number of branch offices in the State. The head office of this department is at Poona and the other branch offices are situated at Bombay, Kolhapur, Kalyan, Nagpur, Amravati and Aurangabad. Some of the officers have been appointed to function as the Land Acquisition Officers and there is thus a Special Land Acquisition Officer at Poona and one full-time Land Acquisition Officer at Bombay in addition to two part-time Land Acquisition Officers at Bombay and Poona.

The statutory powers regarding planning embodied in the Bombav Town Planning Act. 1915. have been replaced by the Bombay Town Planning Act. 1954 This Act generally incorporates the provisions of the Bombay Town Planning Act of 1915 and also makes obligatory on every local authority (except village panchayats) to prepare the development plan for the entire area within its jurisdiction. The development plan stipulates the improvement of existing congested gaothan area of the town and sets to make proposals in respect of outlying open areas so as to guide the development on a planned basis. The proposals of development plan can be implemented by the preparation of statutory town planning schemes. In preparing town planning schemes, planners can ignore to a great extent existing plot boundaries. In designing his layout, existing holdings can be reconstituted and made subservient so the plan, and building plots of good shape and frontage can be alloted to owners of lands ill-shaped for building purposes and without access. The cost of a scheme can be recovered from the owner benefitted, to the extent of 50 per cent. of the increase in the estimated value of the land. When a draft town planning scheme prepared by a local authority in consultation with owners is sanctioned, an arbitrator is appointed. His duties are to bear each owner individually, consider his objections or proposals and, if necessary, make suitable adjustments or amendments in the draft scheme proposals.

Most of the local authorities have no technical staff of their own to prepare the development plan and it has been decided that this department should prepare the development plans on behalf of local authorities under the provisions of the Bombay Town Planning Act, 1954. Accordingly the scheme for preparation of development plans has been provided in the Second Five-Year Plan and the additional staff has been sanctioned for this purpose. From the Jalgaon district the Chalisgaon and Bhusawal towns have been selected so far for the preparation of development plans under the provisions of" Bombay Town Planning Act, 1954. There is no branch office of this department in Jalgaon district, and the development plans of these towns are being prepared in the head office at Poona and the branch office at Bombay, respectively. There is one town planning scheme at Amalner, viz., Town Planning Scheme Amalner No. I which has already been finally sanctioned and has come into force. There are two town planning schemes at present (1959) in draft stage, viz., Amalner No. I (Varied) and Chalisgaon No. I which are on hand with the Consulting Surveyor to Government as Arbitrator. Other work received from the Government, Collector or local bodies is dealt with from head office at Poona if necessary by deputing an assistant.

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