To neutralize the kind of “mentality” in the corridors of power that is believed to have led to the harassment of builder Suraj Parmar and prompted him to shoot himself, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday directed the state administration to evolve and implement an automated Development Control Regulation (DCR) permission system over the next two months.
The system would not need human interventions and it would no scope for blackmailing of developers by politicians or officials,said officials.
The state has provided high-level security to Parmar’s family, who the builder fraternity believes are facing threats from certain blackmailers. CMO officials said Fadnavis was learnt to have directed the Thane police to “crush the mentality” that was raising its head with the growing politician-builder nexus.
Before he shot himself in the neck at a construction site, Parmar wrote a suicide note. He allegedly was facing blackmail from certain local politicians over various project permissions.
A builder delegation from MCHI-CREDAI called on Fadnavis and expressed concern over the administrative sanction process hitting the real estate sector. Housing minister Prakash Mehta was present at the meeting.
A meeting of senior urban development department and revenue department officials was also convened on Tuesday. Fadnavis directed them to set up a high level committee of officials, builders, architects and town planners to discuss developers’ issues and avoid “third party” interference in the development permission processes by making the process “automated”.
Early in the day, a large gathering of builders, contractors and members from allied industry marched to the Thane Municipal Corporation in memory of Parmar and to protest against administrative delays and the misuse of obsolete laws and the RTI Act.
In Navi Mumbai, too, a delegation from the Builders Association of Navi Mumbai took a demonstration march to the offices of Cidco and the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation.