Chandigarh, Oct 28 (IANS) In an initiative aimed at giving a fillip to urban development by allowing the construction of stilt-plus-four floors in all new constructions, the Punjab Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, on Tuesday, gave its nod to the Punjab Unified Building Rules of 2025.

A spokesperson for the Chief Minister’s Office said the building rules aim to introduce a comprehensive and uniform regulatory framework governing building and development activities across the state.

These rules apply equally to the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Local Government, ensuring consistency and simplification in approvals and enforcement.

The key reforms focus on ease of doing business, efficient land utilisation, and vertical urban growth. These rules will stipulate raising the permissible height for low-rise buildings from 15m to 21m and enabling third-party self-certification for plan approval and completion.

The Cabinet also gave approval for the rationalisation of stamp duty and registration fee on instruments of hypothecation and equitable mortgage by amending the Indian Stamp Act of 1899 (Punjab) and Registration Fee Rules.

This step is a progressive and business-friendly initiative aimed at reducing financial burden on industries. It also promotes ease of doing business and improves access to affordable credit, besides enhancing the state’s competitiveness and overall economic environment.

The Cabinet also gave its concurrence to the Punjab Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Counselling and Rehabilitation Centres Rules of 2025, replacing the existing 2011 Rules and First Amendment Rules of 2020, to strengthen the regulation of de-addiction and rehabilitation centres across the state. The rules overcome the shortcomings in the 2011 rules and subsequent amendments in the 2020 rules to regulate 36 government and 177 licensed private de-addiction centres, along with OOAT clinics.

It will help in strengthening licensing, renewal, and inspection processes, biometric attendance, and mandatory online data reporting.

The Cabinet also approved filling of 14 Group-A, 16 Group-B and 80 Group-C posts in the Punjab Sports Medical Cadre to strengthen the sports medical support system across districts. It will also help improve injury management, recovery, and performance of sportspersons, along with the promotion of scientific sports development and alignment with national standards. These professionals will be deployed in major sports districts such as Patiala, Sangrur, Bathinda, Faridkot, Fazilka, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, SAS Nagar, Ropar and Hoshiarpur, where the concentration of players is higher.

To provide quality and affordable healthcare to employees working in factories and industrial units of Dera Bassi and nearby areas, the Cabinet gave its nod to lease around four acres of land for setting up a 100-bed ESI hospital in Dera Bassi. At present, employees in Dera Bassi and adjoining industrial zones rely on ESI facilities in Ludhiana, Mohali, and Chandigarh, which are insufficient to meet the growing healthcare demand. This step will reduce the patient load on existing ESI hospitals and promote industrial welfare and social security in the state’s key industrial belt.

–IANS

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