Office Order No.1/2015
The Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority, Chennai, Administration Division issued Office Order Number 1/2015 dated 27 January 2015, setting guidelines for determining the status and width of an abutting or qualifying road when processing planning permission applications. The guidelines cover road measurement, verification through local body and revenue records, and certification for roads laid on private or government land, and they took immediate effect.
What the guidelines govern
Office Order Number 1/2015 of the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority applies when the authority checks the abutting or qualifying road for a planning permission application. Road width is one of the factors used to decide whether a site can support an ordinary building, special building, group development, multi-storied building, institutional building or industrial building.
The Development Regulations require the qualifying road width for a special building or group development to be available for at least 250 metres along the road abutting the site. For a multi-storied building, it must be available for 500 metres.
How road width is measured
The Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority measures road width as the right of way between properties on opposite sides of the road, measured at right angles to the road's direction.
The measurement does not exclude space occupied by:
- Drains and footpaths.
- Electricity transformers and junction boxes.
- Telephone junction boxes.
- Landscaping or gardening.
- Bus shelters.
- Other street furniture or temporary encroachments.
Encroachments without patta do not adversely affect the road width. If the actual width differs from the designed width by up to 10 per cent, the designed width prevails, with decisions taken case by case. Temporary structures erected by government departments for maintenance work are not treated as encroachments when measuring width.
Verification of road records
The Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority uses site inspections to verify the road, site profile and surrounding development. Outside the city, where road boundaries may not be clearly marked, the authority may also examine the local body's road width register and the Revenue Department's block map or Field Measurement Book.
A Road Width Committee confirms the correctness and availability of the qualifying road width against revenue and local authority records. A road width certificate from a local body, the Highways Department or another road-maintaining agency may be accepted after confirmation by the committee.
Roads on private or government land
Office Order Number 1/2015 provides that:
- A road laid on private land may be accepted if the local body, Highways Department or road-maintaining agency certifies that it maintains the road and states its width.
- For a road on government poramboke land, a revenue authority not below the rank of Revenue Divisional Officer must certify that there is no objection to using the land as a public road.
- For Public Works Department land, the Executive Engineer of the Public Works Department must issue a no objection certificate.
- For a Panchayat Union, the Additional Director of Rural Development must issue the no objection certificate.
This summary is generated from the source document to help you find what is relevant. The PDF above is authoritative. For advice on your own property, use LandLens One or speak to a qualified professional.
Common questions
Will drains, transformers or bus shelters reduce the measured road width?
No. Road width is measured as the right of way between opposite properties without excluding drains, transformers, junction boxes, landscaping, footpaths, bus shelters and similar street furniture.
Can a public road laid on private land qualify for planning permission?
Yes. It may be accepted if the local body, Highways Department or road-maintaining agency certifies that it maintains the road and specifies the road width.
What certification is needed for a road on government poramboke land?
A revenue authority not below the rank of Revenue Divisional Officer must certify that there is no objection to using the land as a public road.
What happens if the measured road width differs from the designed width?
If the variation is up to 10 per cent, the designed width prevails. The Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority decides such situations case by case.
