Building Construction Zones of Kerala

Kerala is a great place to live in terms of weather and good standards of living and most Keralites usually prefer to construct a house in Kerala, with some landscaped area around it. But recently, the trend is on apartment living and many builders in Thrissur and launching projects with flats in Thrissur. But before building your home you have to look out for the Building construction zones of Kerala to see if the building is in the correct zone or you will have to bear dire consequences in the future along with the loss of a huge amount of money. 

The Supreme Court had recently ordered the demolition of five apartment complexes in Maradu municipality in Ernakulam, Kerala, for violating Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) norms. Vishraam Builders, eminent builders in Thrissur strictly adheres to the building rules and builds in only residential zones.

Vishraam Builders, premier builders in Thrissur, bring to you a run through the Building construction zones of Kerala. Just check out!

Coastal Zone

Kerala is a major coastal state and has a long coastal line. As ecosystems near the sea are getting more and more fragile, the coastal line activities need to be restricted. Any human and industrial activity close to the coastline is governed by the Coastal Regulation Zone rules to protect the fragile ecosystems near the sea. Coastal zone is the area up to 500 m from the high-tide line.  Several kinds of restrictions apply near the coastal line, as per criteria like population, ecological sensitivity, distance from shore, etc. There are many CRZ rules to restrict building activities here based on the fact that areas immediately next to the sea are extremely delicate, home to many marine and aquatic life forms, both animals and plants & they need to be protected against unregulated development.

Seismic Zone

The areas which are prone to Seismic activity or earthquakes are called Seismic zones. Kerala lies in an area not having much seismic activity. But in the recent past seismic activity has occurred in clusters along the border with Tamil Nadu, especially in the districts of Idukki and Palakkad. The central midland region is more prone to seismic activity compared to other parts of Kerala. This region appears to have generated light to moderate size earthquakes.  A number of faults have been identified in Kerala out of which the Periyar Fault is more active. Main damage from earthquakes relies on numerous factors like subsurface geology as well as adherence to the building codes. Many builders in Thrissur are following rules set by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) as criterion for construction of earthquake resistant structures.

Industrial Zone

There are specific Industrial areas defined in Kerala for the development of industries. These are the areas where industrial activity is taking place or is likely to take place in the future. The development in the area will be characterized by industrial estates, housing areas/townships, transportation networks, trade & commercial areas, and waste/effluent treatment and disposal.

 These areas, amongst others, may include: 

a) Mega industrial infrastructure projects like Industrial Corridors 

b) Special industrial regions (SIRs)

c) Petroleum, Chemicals and Petro-chemical Investment Regions (PCPIRs); d) Areas with major industrial estates/complexes, viz. Special Economic Zones (SEZs); Industrial Estates etc.

 e) Other such areas

Construction of buildings in Industrial zones have to follow certain norms and proper permissions are needed. Subsidies and amenities are given by the Government here for industrial construction.

Agricultural Zone

The agricultural zone is demarcated to ensure protection of agricultural lands from land use conversions. Agricultural zones ensure food security. They are targeted to meet the consumption needs of a growing population and to meet livelihood needs of the dependent population. In India as per the law, a person needs to be a farmer to own agricultural land. Agricultural land cannot be used for residential purposes & houses cannot be constructed on agricultural land to live in. You need to get the land use converted from agricultural to residential before any construction to take place. It is not easy to convert a fertile piece of agricultural land into a residential one. The land should be a dry land, for conversion. There are other applicable laws relevant to the transfer of the rights to the land, ownership records of the land and leases, if any. Often, plots of agricultural land may not be transferable. 

Civil Aviation

To minimize the population affected by aircraft noise land-use zoning has been done around airports. The areas of land near airports are usually demarcated as civil aviation zone. With effective land-use planning and management activities nearby airports are made compatible with aviation. Airport Civil Aviation zones are usually located far away from schools and residential areas to avoid the discomfort caused by the aircraft noise and emissions of the aircraft fuel.  Residential development is restricted near Airports as much land is required near the airport for further expansion of runways and other developments. 

Heritage Sites

The heritage zone aims to preserve historic and cultural heritage by protecting, places/sites of religious, archaeological, scenic and tourist importance. Residential development is restricted in heritage site areas and special permissions are needed. Historic areas cover places of religious importance, areas with monuments of national/state level importance, areas with world heritage sites etc. 

Areas Demarcated for Development by Government

Several sites are demarcated by the Government for economic and infrastructure development like Software parks, Railway & Bus stations, Flyovers, Bridges, Canals etc. There are also areas that are required to promote and support social development of tribals and poor section of society for their livelihood. 

Forest and Biodiversity Conserved Area

There are several areas which are aimed to preserve and conserve lands under important environmental functions like those declared as National Parks, Wild Life Sanctuaries, Reserved Forests, Eco Sensitive Zones, etc. and guide land uses around such preserved and conserved areas. This is done mainly not to have land use conflicts or negative environmental impacts. The areas of natural environment and its resources that provide ecosystem services also need to be protected. 

The main ecological and natural resources areas cover environmentally sensitive/fragile areas like reserved/protected forests, biosphere reserves, national parks, wild life sanctuaries and coastal regulation zones etc. These areas provide various ecosystem services and are protected by various environments and forest Acts. Natural resource areas like water bodies (rivers, creeks, lakes), areas with important mineral resources and other natural resources areas are also considered under this sector.  Other than that, areas with high share of attractive landscapes and scenic beauty also come under this category. 

Contact us at Vishraam Builders to book your Apartments in Thrissur today.