A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science

Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 1987

Prior to the approval of Kathmandu Valley Town Plan by HMG in 1976, various attempts were made to formulate and implement similar plans in the valley without much success. However, with a separate institutional set-up and regulatory powers, the 1976 plan was expected to guide and/or regulate the physical development of urban centers in the valley. Contrary to its envisaged objectives and goals, a decade of experience shows that, the regulatory approach of the plan had had little effect in curbing the haphazard growth of the towns. This study aims to examine the development control measur es , and especially the building regulations where lies the emphasis of the plan, in an attempt to find whether the regulations are adequate and are effectively implemented and to pin-point the gaps, major issues of divergence, and enforcement problems in Kathmandu. This was achieved through the exploration of secondary sources, structured interviews with 15 experts involved in the formulation and implementation of control measures and the comparison of 75 building permits with the actual construction in two typical wards, one in the core and another in the fringe area of Kathmandu Town Panchayat (KTP). The study revealed that not only the present regulations are unsound, inadequate, full of gaps and ineffective causing their wide spread violation, but also that a complex legal and enforcement situation prevails because of the overlapping function and complete lack of co-ordination between Kathmandu Valley Town Development Committee (KVTDC) and KTP, the two major institutions directly involved in the task. Based on such findings, the study calls for the need for comprehensive planning documents embracing the entire valley rather than insisting upon continuing with the present patchwork regulatory approach. However, owing to the time lag to prepare such a comprehensive plan, the study recommends some short term measures to be taken in order to alleviate the present inadequacy and lack of enforcement of the development control measures, till such a time that the proper planning tools are conceived. In this light, the study recommends that KVTDC should prepare revised land use plan and building regulations based on extensive ground work and recommendations made by PADCO report for Greater Kathmandu and put it forward for government approval and give legal validity. The study concludes with further recommendations for the improvement of the present situation by introducing some additional measures like subdivision regulation, structural safety, fire protection and occupancy permit and pursuing a coordinated approach of enforcement through Kathmandu Town Panchayat with assistance from KVTDC under a different institutional arrangement .