Blog: February 2017

Tuesday, 28 February 2017

Congratulations , Shri Ajoy Mehta !

And thank you for considering “ Self Certification / Declaration / Undertaking “ by builders , as suggested in my following email to you / Shri Devendra Fadnavis ( 03 Jan 2016 )

A news report in Mumbai Mirror ( 28 Feb 2017 ) reads:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“ The draft policy , which now awaits only Municipal Commissioner Ajoy Mehta’s approval says that architects will submit online applications for seeking OCs

The architects will have to inspect the buildings under their care in accordance to the approved plans and submit a certificate stating that the structures have been completed as per approved plans

The architects will also have to submit a list of variations or discrepancies thereof

The new policy will make it mandatory for the architect to upload video clips along with photographs of the entire building “

The report quotes you :

“ The whole idea is to smoothen and speed up the process of granting an OC . Thi is part of our ease of doing business initiative “

My Email dt 03 Jan 2016, to Shri Ajoy Mehta / Shri Devendra Fadnavis :

Dear Change Agents :

Just read about Maharashtra Government announcement re reduction of Building Approvals from 119 to 58

And granting these approvals within 60 days instead of current ONE YEAR !

Congratulations !

I hope , someday soon , this will lead to implementation of my following suggestion

When implemented , it will serve as THE BENCHMARK , for all the other State Governments

Wednesday, 4 November 2015

SELF CERTIFICATION FOR BUILDERS ?

In Hindustan Times ( Oct 29 ) , Moushumi Das Gupta writes :

Govt to streamline rules for Construction Projects

Currently , a builder requires as many as 34 kinds of permits from two dozen Ministries, before starting construction

This process takes up to 3 years

Now, Central Govt has initiated a process to streamline the approvals required to ensure that builders get all the construction permits within 60 days

Eg:

* Built up Area............. Environment Ministry

* Height Restriction...... .Civil Aviation Ministry

Cabinet Secretary has directed all the Ministries to come out with notifications by end Dec 2015

The Centre has decided to empower Municipalities to grant all construction related approvals , based on these notifications

One would be able to get all approvals from under one roof , which in this case , would be the Municipal Corporation's office

Although a very laudable initiative , I believe there is tremendous scope to further streamline and digitize this approval process, in the nature of

E-Delivery of Services to Construction Industry

Here is how :

* All builders / developers must register on Municipal Web sites and obtain

unique BUILDER REGISTRATION NUMBER

* Builders must fill in online, on web site of concerned Municipality, a form :

BUILDING PERMIT APPLICATION

* Building Permit Application Form will have a STANDARD FORMAT , into

which applicant will need to submit exhaustive details re the project

This will include detailed Floor Plans and Structural Drawings , along with

names / contact details of Architects / Structural Engineers etc

The FORM will require slab-casting dates for each slab and the final

completion date when builder will apply for Occupation Certificate

* The Form will have a section called

SELF CERTIFICATION / DECLARATION

Builder would be required to tick YES / NO against each item as shown :

Does your proposed Building / Structure / Project , satisfy the criteria /

notifications / regulations , issued by the concerned Ministries in respect

of :

# Built-up Area........... ( YES ) / ( NO )

# Height Restriction

# Fire Fighting

# Water Harvesting

# Roof-top Solar Power

# Effluent Treatment

# Garbage Disposal

# Earthquake Resistant Structural Design..............etc

Clicking on each item will reveal the relevant " Notification / Regulation " issued by the concerned Ministry

To make the process absolutely fool-proof , the form will insist on an " Electronic Signature " of the applicant

DECLARATION / UNDERTAKING :

" I declare that I have read each and every notification / regulation , listed in respect of items mentioned above

I further declare that I explicitly agree to abide by these regulations

I am aware that Occupation Certificate will not be granted if my completed project is found to be in violation of any of these notifications / regulations

I will not allow any person / entity to occupy any part of this premises , until and unless , Municipality issues to me , the Occupation Certificate

If Municipality finds any violations , I agree to rectify the same before applying for a fresh Occupation Certificate

IF MUNICIPALITY IS NOT IN A POSITION TO ISSUE OCCUPATION CERTIFICATE DUE TO ANY

VIOLATIONS WHICH SIMPLY CANNOT BE RECTIFIED , THEN I WILL DEMOLISH THE SAID BUILDING / PROJECT / STRUCTURE ON MY OWN AND BEFORE SUCH DEMOLITION , REFUND WITH INTEREST , PAYMENTS COLLECTED FROM THE BUYERS

The plot of land is free from any encumbrances / litigations

I am not in default of any loans taken from any bank / individuals

I will not accept any payment in cash , nor make cash payments

I absolve the Municipal Corporation of any liability arising out of non completion of my project

I agree that my Building Permit Application and my Registration Application details , be made accessible to public on your web site , along with full details of my past / current projects and full details of my balance sheet / bank borrowings "

GRANT OF APPROVALS BY MINISTRIES :

As soon as the builder submits the online BUILDING PERMIT APPLICATION , it automatically and instantly , appears on the web sites of ALL the concerned Ministries

The concerned officer of each Ministry , makes APPROVED / REJECTED entries in the application form , from the backend

If rejected , he will provide the reasons

Ministry officers are required to carry out this entry , within 24 hours

As soon as an officer of any Ministry makes entry and SUBMITS , the application forms on web sites of ALL Ministries and web site of the concerned Municipality , get updated simultaneously and instantly , making for MIRROR IMAGES at all times

As soon as any entry is made , a copy gets emailed to the applicant builder

Any " editing " of the application form by the builder , will start the entire process , all over

Applicant builder will be obliged to display the latest emailed form at the site

The database so created on web sites of ALL Ministries - and concerned Municipality - will be searchable State-wise / City-wise

CHANGES IN RELEVANT LAWS :

To speed up any litigation between the parties concerned ( Builder / Buyers / Central & State Govts / Municipality / Bankers etc ) , existing laws may be changed

IMPORTANT :

Every application must be in the open domain and visible to anyone , online and transparently

There should be provision for any visitor of the web site to report any abuse / violation of regulations or any objection to the proposed construction

ADVANTAGES :

If such SELF CERTIFICATION process is implemented , it should be possible for India to beat Singapore , where getting 11 approval takes only 26 days !

It would be ZERO days in our case !

Now couple this with abolition of Corporate Income Tax for Construction Industry for the next 10 years and witness a MIRACLE

Then only it would become possible for achieving the following targets set by different States / Centre , under HOUSING FOR ALL:

* Maharashtra........... 5 lakh ( By 2020 )

* Gujarat................... 50 lakh ( 2013 - 2018 )

* Centre.................... 220 lakh ( by 2022 )

Also imagine :

* Employment it would generate

* FDI it would bring in

* Our rank in EASE OF DOING BUSINESS

Need of the hour is :

* Come out of " Analysis Paralysis "

* Get rid of historical baggage

* Break free from the legacy of the past

* Think " Out of Box "

* Take risk without worrying about possible failure

* Make Course-Corrections , as you learn what mistakes got made

hemen parekh / 05 Nov 2015

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

01 March 2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

Monday, 27 February 2017

Writing on the Wall ?

DNA ( 26 Feb 2017 ) carries following news :

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“ AI steals code from other programmes “

As each day passes by, Artificial Intelligence is getting smarter. A new AI program has now gained the ability to write its own code.

The AI program, which is built by Microsoft and Cambridge University researchers, is able to solve programming problems — BY STEALING CODE FROM OTHER PROGRAMS. The system called DeepCoder, has the ability to solve basic programming challenges by PLAGIARIZING BITS OF CODE FROM OTHER EXISTING SOFTWARE.

To solve these programming problems, and write code, the machine uses a technique known as program synthesis - can be used TO AUTOMATE THE TEDIOUS PART OF CODE DEVELOPMENT AND LET THE DEVELOPERS FOCUS ON COMPLEX TASKS.

The most wonderful outcome of this machine is that IT WILL GIVE PEOPLE THE ABILITY TO BUILD PROGRAMS, WITHOUT KNOWING HOW TO CODE. Reported by New Scientist, the system is said to TAKE LINES OF CODE FROM EXISTING PROGRAMS AND COMBINING THEM RESPECTIVELY.

This neural network can also take design clues and develop a program after harvesting appropriate lines of code from a massive code database using machine learning. It is said to analyze which lines would be the best fit and writes a working code, in just a few seconds. At the moment, DeepCoder is only capable of solving programming challenges that involve around five lines of code.

Building an AI which is capable of such intense coding could soon, revolutionize the development of computer programs.

If DeepCoder AI System “ will give people the ability to build programs, without knowing how to code “ , what could be the implications for the Indian IT industry , which :

· Employs 3.5 million persons in India ( mostly , software developers )

· Deploys 3 lakh developers in USA ( on H1 B visa ) ?

India became a “ Software Superpower “ on the back of the “ grunt work “ by these millions

What happens when AI ( DeepCoder ) takes over that work ?

Can we become “ Software Superfluous “ ?

Shall we treat the emergence of DeepCoder , a threat or an opportunity ?

There is no way , we can stop the march of AI , which is accelerating by the day !

There is only one way

If we cannot lick them , we must join them !

By becoming :

TheBack Factory of the World

{ https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/09/back-factory-of-world.html }

But that is possible only if the government ,

Gets Out of the Way

{ https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/02/here-is-clue-get-out-of-their-way.html }

THE WRITING IS ON THE WALL !

28 Feb 2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

Monday, 20 February 2017

Un-Implementable Laws : Unstoppable Corruption

Mumbai Municipal Corporation is about to implement a “ Pay and Park “ policy for vehicles

THE POLICY

Parking charges will differ – and depend upon :

· Day parking vs Night Parking ( 8 pm to 8 am )

( Night time charges will be 50 % of Day time charges )

· Location Category

A = Prime Areas by Footfall

B = Busy Commercial Areas

C = Other Areas

· Vehicle Category

4 wheelers = Buses / Cars ( Day time : Rs 3960 – 1320 pm )

2 Wheelers = Motorcycles ( Day time : Rs 1650 – 550 pm )

· All rates will be different on Sunday and Public Holiday

· Only one slot will be available per car owner and housing societies will have to get in touch with their local ward office to know the particulars

· For each location category, there will be different rates for “ Hourly Parking “, ranging as follows :

# Cat A = Rs 60 / Cat B = Rs 40 / Cat C = Rs 20 ( for 4 wheelers )

# Cat A = Rs 15 / Cat B = Rs 5 / Cat C = Rs 5 ( for 2 wheelers )

Charges will change “ Parking Duration “ wise ( 1-3 hr / 3-6 hr / 6-12 hr / 12-24 hr )

· Parking will be FREE for certain designated areas

WILL APPLY TO

· There are some 30 lakh vehicles in Mumbai , comprising 17 lakh 2 wheelers and 9 lakh , 4 wheelers ( no idea about vehicles in transit or being scrapped ! )

· Some 500 new vehicles are getting registered DAILY

· More than half of these are being parked on public roads ( day and night )

· Mumbai boasts of 2000 km of public roads

WHO WILL ISSUE “ PARKING PERMITS “ ?

Some “ humans “ sitting in RTO or some other Government Department

WHAT PROOF WILL THEY NEED ?

· Domicile Certificate

· Aadhar Card

· Proof of Residential Addresses ( or Office Address ) from your building Societies

· Car Registration Book ( proof that car belongs to YOU )

· Letters from Society Secretaries confirming that you are not allotted any parking space inside the Society premises

· Letter from RTO re number of vehicles registered in your name

WHAT CRITERIA WILL BE USED WHILE GRANTING PARKING PERMIT ?

· Number of members in applicant’s family

· Number of vehicles in applicant’s family

· Duration of stay in Mumbai

· Duration of ownership of vehicles

· Location Category ( Resi / Office )

· Daily Travel direction and distance to be covered ( to / from )

· Whether Petrol / Diesel or Electric Vehicle

· Reason for not using “ Public Transport “

· Why you cannot use a 2 wheeler in place of a 4 wheeler ?

· Why you cannot work at night instead of in day time ? or a staggered shift ?

· If coming to work from outside Municipal Limits , why can’t you leave your vehicle outside and take a taxi ?

· Why can’t you take your family for a movie on a Sunday ?

CAN A HUMAN REJECT YOUR CLAIM BASED ON THESE CRITERIA ?

· That is the whole idea ! How else can he “ oblige “ you – for a “ consideration “ ?

CANNOT A SOFTWARE ALGORITHM ALLOT PARKING PERMITS FAIRLY ?

· No big deal for a software to decide : “ Who “ gets to park, “ Where and When “

· If actual traffic pattern ( including ,” which “vehicle was stationary – parked – and “ when “ – and for “ how long “ ) can be compiled for a period of 3 months , then , using BIG DATA ANALYTICS , this can be done by a software

WHAT WILL BE REQUIRED ?

· Every vehicle to be fitted with a RFID sensor / GPS locator app

· Exclusive Transponder on a Geo-Synchronous Satellite

CAN ANYTHING BE DONE TO AUTOMATE COLLECTION OF PARKING CHARGES ?

· No problem ! Since the days of coin-operated Parking Meters on footpaths , technology has made tremendous progress

· May be latest version of such meters do not require coins but swipe of a card

· Only problem is that you need an army of Traffic Policemen who can keep roaming Mumbai’s 2000 km of roads , to find out which Parking Meter is showing RED FLAG , indicating expiry of parking time !

And of course , “ hafta trade “ will flourish like anything !

WHAT OTHER TECHNOLOGIES CAN HELP ?

· Shri Nitin Gadkariji has already introduced automated toll gates where car owners need not stop to pay the toll charges . Vehicles which have installed pre-paid RFID sensors can just whiz pass ! Toll amount gets deducted / transferred , automatically

There is no technological difficulty in “ reversing “ this application for stationary vehicles !

· Then there are drones !

An army of drones can keep tab ( 24*7 ) of all stationary vehicles , find those which are stationary at the same GPS location for more than 10 minutes and deduct the appropriate “ parking charges “ from those pre-paid RFID sensors , installed in all vehicles . No rocket science this ! Vehicle batteries will supply power to RFID chips

· And if you do not want to track / monitor / control , an army of DRONES , then just ask ISRO to launch a Geo-Synchronous Satellite to do the same job for ALL the vehicles in ALL the cities of India !

WHY DO WE NEED TO DECIDE , WHO WILL / CAN , PARK WHERE AND WHEN AND FOR HOW LONG ?

Let vehicle owners park any number of vehicles , anywhere and at any time and for any period – if they manage to find a parking slot !

As long as vehicles are installed with pre-paid RFID chips , our Geo Satellite will keep collecting parking charges and transfer to the bank account of Mumbai Municipal Corporation !

NO HUMAN INTERVENTION !

NO ARBITRARY DECISIONS !

NO NEED FOR MILLIONS OF APPLICATIONS TO BE PROCESSED !

NO NEED FOR COLLECTION MACHINERY !

NO ARMY OF TRAFFIC POLICE TO CHECK PARKING VIOLATIONS !

NO SCOPE FOR HAFTAS !

And ISRO will do all of this for , may be Rs 100 crores , which is dirt cheap !

If all 20 crore vehicles get covered by this Satellite , cost per vehicle will be just Rs 5 / -

HOW MUCH CAN BMC EARN USING SUCH A SATELLITE ?

Here is an approx. estimate based on average of parking rates proposed by BMC :

# For Day / Night Parking Slots ( allotted )

· For 9 lakh 4 wheelers ….. Rs 237 Crore / month

· For 17 lakh 2 wheelers…. Rs 187 Crore / month

· For 4 lakh others………….. Rs 60 Crore / month

# For hourly rate parking ( non-alloted )

· All types of vehicles…….. Rs 300 Crore / month

TOTAL …………………………… Rs 784 Crore / month ( Rs 9,408 Cr / year )

Now it is not difficult for NDA Ministers concerned ( Shri Nitin Gadkariji / Shri Venkaiah Naiduji ) to compute such “ Revenue “ figures for ALL other municipalities and conclude that the Geo Satellite will pay for itself in just ONE DAY !

Please , do not misunderstand me

I am not publishing this blog in order to influence the voters in tomorrow’s BMC elections , to vote for that party which promises to implement my suggestion !

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

20 Feb 2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs