Too FAR, too fast: Where is Bengaluru heading?

The Karnataka government’s announcement of premium Floor Area Ratio (FAR) in constructions has stirred a controversy, with urban planners, real estate industry and the public engaged in discussions about the proposal which will have far-reaching consequences on the city and the quality of life it provides.

FAR or FSI (Floor Space Index) refers to the proportion of total built-up area to the total plot or site area. It is regulated according to the Development Control Regulations (DCR) and the provisions of the National Building Code. These regulations are city-specific and devised depending on the local conditions and the pace of urban development in the surrounding regions. In Indian cities, FAR generally ranges from 1 to 3.5 (Delhi: 1.2-3.5; Mumbai: 1.33-1.83 and 2.5 for land parcel development; Kolkata: 1.5-2.5). It also varies according to land use. In Bengaluru, FAR ranges from 1.5 to 2.5 in residential zones and 2.5 to 4 in commercial zones.

The state government has now proposed to relax FAR regulations by introducing premium FAR which allows builders to purchase additional buildable area over and above the existing limits by paying a premium to the government. The draft regulations published in January 2025 provide for premium FAR at 50 per centof the guidance value of properties developed on roads with a width of more than 30 feet. The permissible limits for different road widths are: a) 20-30 feet: 20 per cent of permissible FAR b) 40-60 feet: 40 per cent c) wider than 60 feet: 60 per cent. The price to be paid is not less than 28 per cent of the guidance value of the additional built-up area.

Higher FAR is expected to accelerate urban development which, in turn, would facilitate rapid economic growth. It is primarily aimed at achieving higher population density, housing density, and job density. Additional floor space at the same location would make projects more financially viable even on smaller plots. Even now, we find that 3-5 floors are illegally built on plots as small as 1,200 sq ft. So the builder, big or small, stands to gain.

While theoretically, these are sound arguments in favour of premium FAR, it is important to look at the long-term impact of the proposal. This is bound to vary, depending on the local conditions of each city. Higher densities would require proportionate access to water, power, sewerage and transport facilities to serve the increased population. In Bengaluru, several areas already suffer from a lack of these amenities. Furthermore, the quality of many 30-feet and 40-feet wide roads leaves much to be desired.

Densification is closely related to public transport. All large cities in the west such as London, New York, Paris, and Berlin have excellent public transport – both bus and metro rail. So do Asian cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, and Tokyo. Even New Delhi has a good metro network and has interchanges with metros in cities like Gurgaon in Haryana and Noida in UP. Bengaluru Metro is yet to cover all parts of the city and is still a work in progress. Extension of public transport must be planned in conjunction with transit-oriented development, as spelt out in the Urban Transport Policy.

Flawed priorities

This is where urban planning becomes important and remains largely ignored. In the absence of an up-to-date master plan, the government is going ahead with ad hoc projects – tunnel roads and double-deck flyovers are touted as solutions to the city’s traffic problems and a fancy sky-deck to attract tourists. Such projects will only aggravate the city’s traffic hassles. Solutions must be viewed not just in terms of unobstructed movement of automobiles – they must factor in parking, quality of roads, last-mile connectivity, and non-motorable transport.

As more vehicles flood the city, the issues of congestion and inadequate parking become aggravated. Weak enforcement of parking regulations remains a key issue, with vehicle owners claiming public roads as personal property. The viable approach
will be to bring down the number of
private vehicles on the roads, not to create infrastructure that enables their faster movement.

The virtual non-enforcement of building regulations in Bengaluru has only added to the congestion, giving a free run to land owners to raise multi-storeyed buildings with hardly any parking space and streets getting clogged leaving no space for walkers.

Another critical issue relates to the environmental impact caused by the rising vehicular population and continuous construction activities. Air pollution is on the rise, adding to health problems. Trees are giving way to concrete, and agricultural land in the agglomeration is being swallowed up by real estate, both private and public. Climate change experts are predicting unforeseen natural disasters for which the city must be prepared.

It is important to complement densification of areas with transit-oriented development. Premium FAR should not be offered uniformly across the city and should be confined to areas with adequate road width (more than 40 feet) and civic amenities to serve the additional population. Those who utilise higher FAR must be directed to provide adequate parking. Devising means to reduce the number of vehicles and curb illegal construction is the way forward. This is not impossible as political leaders seem to assume but calls for strong political will and hard decision-making.

The time has come to give up short-sighted measures and adopt a forward-looking approach. Quality of life is more important than rapid commutes.

(The writer is a former chief secretary, Government of Karnataka)