CREDAI has welcomed the reform of approval of high-rise buildings in Tamil Nadu

The Confederation of Real Estate Developers Associations of India (CREDAI) has welcomed the Tamil Nadu government’s decision to delegate powers to the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) to grant planning permission for high-rise projects in the Chennai metropolitan area.

“This is a very important and timely reform for the real estate sector in Chennai,” said WS Habib, President, CREDAI Tamil Nadu. “Until now, the approval of high-rise buildings had to go through several stages – application, field inspection, detailed inspection, assessment by the High-rise Buildings Committee, recommendations to the government and finally a government regulation – before a building permit could be granted. While each stage had a purpose, the overall process often led to significant time delays,” he added.

Mr Habib went on to say: “By empowering the CMDA to grant or refuse planning permission based on the recommendations of the High-rise Buildings Committee, the government has created a more practical, accountable and time-bound approval framework.”

“At this important juncture, CREDAI Tamil Nadu also humbly submits to the government that this progressive approach may be gradually extended to other major cities of Tamil Nadu like Coimbatore, Madurai and Tiruchirappalli. Coimbatore and Madurai already have urban development authorities in place and town planning areas have also been notified for Coimbatore and Timbatore.

These regional cities need to be further strengthened with their own empowered planning and development authorities to process and grant approvals at the local level without requiring every major approval to come from Chennai, he said.

Published – June 19, 2026 0:51 AM IST