With an aim to simplify the existing system of acquiring authorisation for building construction, the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is all set to introduce “e-building permit system”, which will convert traditional maps to an automated electronic system.

This initiative will provide access to both owners and constructors, via a web-based application that will record maps in digital format and store them at the government’s Integrated Data Centre.

At the moment, the KMC is completing its first phase of developing and archiving the maps. “The first round has been successful with data entry for 140 houses,” said Bimal Rijal, chief of the Urban Development Division at the KMC. The official maps for entry were acquired from the Department of Urban Development.

In the first phase, the project will include 10,000 houses at the cost of Rs 50 million over the next six months.

This automated system is funded by the UNDP for making it easier to obtain building permits. Electronic building permit system (E-BPS) has been developed to assist municipalities to improve their current building permit process where applications are processed and records maintained.

E-BPS is a distributed system and will be implemented at both the municipal offices as well as their respective ward offices. The system allows citizens to submit as well as track their applications and its status using the internet on web address 202.45.144.174.

According to Rijal, the system will also integrate safer building codes into the traditional building permit approval system.

 “After we create digitised records for the new building, we also plan to incorporate old buildings to our system which will be effective and efficient to monitor and evaluate the current state of building construction in a municipal area,” said Rijal.

“The system will help study and neutralise haphazard construction together with preparedness for possible natural disaster,” he added.

The KMC says introduction of this system will facilitate its staff with responsibilities like application registration, technical data verification, compliance checking, field verification, certificate printing, handling of legal issues, house address generation, GIS data maintenance, collection of permit fees, assessment of disaster vulnerability, building permit data archiving and executive permit approval which will be accessible through LAN, Intranet or Internet.

Rijal said with this system all the newly constructed buildings can be brought under the framework of the national building code.

“We can monitor irregularities in the building viewing it against the blueprint and it will also secure property owners residing abroad,” added Rijal.

The objective of the plan in the long run is to build a proper web system, which will allow anyone to acquire the permits via the internet.

Bid for safe building practices
> Plan will convert traditional maps to an automated electronic system.
> Maps to be recorded in digital format and stored at the government's Integrated Data Centre.
> System to allow citizens to submit and track their applications and see their status using the internet on web address.

source: the kathmandu post,27 Nov 2013