PANAJI: From January 1, 2019 all new projects applying for permission will have to be ‘green’ as defined by the India Green Building Council, Minister for Town and Country Planning Vijai Sardesai has said.
Addressing the valedictory function of CII event on green building with Indian Green Building Council Sardesai said the government would make it compulsory.
“We want Goa to go forward and for Goa to be clean, green and smart. Now green is very much in. Further development in Goa that will come by virtue of 16B which is individual zone changes, will have to compulsorily be green buildings. I think this is much bigger incentive than anything else you can suggest,” Sardesai said.
The Goa Vidhan Sabha had earlier this year passed amendments to the Town and Country Planning Act which allowed for case by case changes to the Regional Plan and conversion of lands. The new projects that would be allowed through these changes would have to compulsorily be green, Sardesai said.
“If we do not allow you to convert anything, where will you build anything. Fact is, we are allowing to build because you are building green. If we do this, this is the biggest contribution to the green movement which IGBC stands for,” he said.
“Compulsory means nobody can escape it. You have to go green otherwise you do not get to build. And this is not for the common man. This is only for projects. You (builders) either follow this way, or you do not come to Goa. If this is the way forward than we have to take a concrete step and say that this will be implemented from January 1, 2019,” Sardesai said.
