Lok Sabha Question No. 2096 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-02-12
Subject: Issues relating to Industrial Areas in Chandigarh
Ministry: MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES
Asked by: Shri Manish Tewari

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2096 TO BE ANSWERED ON: 12.02.2026

## ISSUES RELATING TO INDUSTRIAL AREAS IN CHANDIGARH

2096. SHRI MANISH TEWARI:

Will the Minister of MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has taken cognisance of the long-pending issues faced by industrial units in Chandigarh's Industrial Area, including restrictive Floor Area Ratio (FAR) norms, defective land titles, leasehold constraints and widespread building violation and misuse notices, if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether  existing  FAR  limit  of  0.75  has  rendered  industrial  operations  economically  unviable, especially when compared to neighbouring industrial areas in Punjab and Haryana with FAR norms of 2.5 to 3.0 and whether Government proposes to rationalise it and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether  the  Government  proposes  to  address  defective  titles  arising  from  historical  leasehold allotments and consider conversion of industrial properties from leasehold to freehold and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether retrospective amendments to the Chandigarh Estate Rules relating to penalties have been reviewed for legal validity and if so, the details thereof;
- (e) whether a one-time amnesty scheme for building violations and adoption of MSME Development Act, 2006 for permitting service activities are under consideration, if so, the details thereof; and
- (f) the timeline fixed for resolving these issues?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES (SUSHRI SHOBHA KARANDLAJE)

(a) to (c): The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sector consists of private enterprises/industries. Promotion and development of enterprises, industries and industrial area is a State subject.  The  issues  relates  to  the  Industrial  Area  of  Chandigarh,  fall  primarily  with  the  administrative jurisdiction of Chandigarh Administration and the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The Industrial Area of Chandigarh is being governed with the Architectural Controls and Zoning Plans for different plot sizes.  Initially, FAR of 0.5 was permitted, which was further enhanced to 0.6 and later 0.75/1.00 as per the plot sizes. Further, the matter with respect to flexible development norms and higher  FAR  viz-a-viz  the  neighbouring  states  has  been  deliberated  in  the  committee  meeting  of Deregulation  1.0,  2.0  for  Industrial  Area,  Phase-I,  II  &  III.  A  Committee  has  been  constituted  by  the Chandigarh  Administration  under  the  chairmanship  of  Deputy  Commissioner-cum-Estate  Officer  on 23.01.2026 to revisit/amend Building Regulations to Reduce Land Loss in Industrial plots and it is being reviewed w.r.t. augmentation of services by Municipal Corporation towards increase in FAR.

As informed by Estate Office, UT, Chandigarh the issues related to defective titles and conversion of  industrial  properties  from  leasehold  to  freehold  is  governed  by  Chandigarh  Administration  and  the Ministry of Home Affairs. Matters related to regularization of such issues are examined on a case-to-case basis in accordance with the provisions of the Capital of Punjab (Development and Regulation) Act, 1952, the Chandigarh Estate Rules, 2007 and the Chandigarh Building Rules (Urban), 2017.

It  has  further  been  informed  that  the  proposal  of  Chandigarh  Administration  for conversion  of industrial/commercial plots from leasehold to freehold in UT of Chandigarh was examined by Ministry of Home Affairs and the same has not been agreed to.

(d) to (f): Action  relating  to  penalties  is  taken  as  per  the  provisions  of  the  Capital  of  Punjab (Development and Regulation) Act, 1952 and the Rules framed thereunder. As informed by the Estate Office, the proposal for amendment of the penalty provisions has been forwarded to the Ministry of Home Affairs.

It has been further informed that at present, no amnesty scheme is in force.

While the  Ministry  of  MSME  promotes  a  facilitative  ecosystem  for  MSMEs  under  the  MSME Development Act, 2006, implementation of such measures is subject to local laws and regulations. The Ministry  of  MSME  remains  engaged  with  stakeholders  including  States  and  convey  MSME-related concerns to the appropriate authorities, as required.

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