TV
In a significant development bringing relief to countless landowners and prospective buyers, the Odisha government has lifted all restrictions on the sale of part plots—parcels of subdivided land less than a full plot.
For years, individuals hoping to sell their land for urgent needs such as daughters’ marriages or higher education were left in distress due to an indefinite freeze on part plot transactions. With no alternative financial avenues, many families faced immense hardship.
Odisha government introduced on Tuesday the ODA (Planning & Building Standard) Second Amendment Rules, allowing part sale of plots and without approval for patches of land up to 500 square meters in size, bringing relief to landowners and developers.
Also Read: Odisha Govt allows part sale of plots sans approval
“Earlier all roads were closed and it was creating problems for those who wanted to sell their plot for their daughter’s marriage or education. All the restrictions up to 500 square meter (5200 sqft) has been removed for part-plot sell. If a land owner wants to sell beyond the stipulated allowed limit via plotting scheme, they have to prepare a layout and leave 6 meter space for road if the area is less and for more area it is 9 meter,” said Suresh Pujari.
Now, the path to legally sell part plots up to 5,200 square feet has been cleared, subject to adherence to updated planning norms. Sellers must develop a proper layout that includes 9-metre-wide roads, drainage systems, parking areas, and designated open spaces. Once the layout is prepared, it must be submitted to either the BDA (Bhubaneswar Development Authority) or the concerned Block Development Officer (BDO) in rural areas and other concerned departments for necessary approval.
The prolonged ban on part plot sales had not only caused public hardship but also reportedly led to substantial revenue loss for the government. Recognizing this, authorities have now streamlined the process, keeping the interests of all stakeholders in mind, said sources.
No Restrictions on Sale of Agricultural Land:
Importantly, all restrictions on agricultural land for such sales have been removed, except in the case of residential plot conversions, where some conditions remain in place. Further, work is underway to resolve issues related to apartment registration, which had been stuck in bureaucratic bottlenecks for long. Officials confirmed that file processing has begun, and the matter is now in its final stages.
Sources indicate that had the previous administration addressed these long-standing issues in time, thousands of affected families could have avoided undue hardship and the exchequer would have been spared losses running into thousands of crores.
This policy shift marks a new chapter in urban and rural land reforms, promising both economic benefit and citizen convenience.
“People were earlier facing a lot of issues for years as they were not able to sell their plots and there were no space for roads. This is only a way towards ease of living. The government was also incurring losses and the previous governments had not done anything to address such issues,” the Minister alleged.
Sub Division Of Plots
No restrictions on sub-division among family members.
One time exemption from lay out approval if the sub divided plot is less than 500 square meter and is not meant for any real estate project.
People buying in groups may sub-divide if the sub-divided plots are less than 500 square meter.
Earlier registered/mutated/settlement plots do not need to apply for lay out approval for the transaction made before thus rule coming into effect.
Even in case of any sub-division, the requirement of Road width as well as Zone regulations shall apply.
The new rules shall not be applicable to agricultural land. The kisam shall remain agricultural only.
Regularisation
Earlier plots which were sold without any lay out approvals shall be regularised provided a ROAD of 6 meter is available by paying a compounding fee of 5-10% depending on the size of the plot.
No regularisation shall be allowed in case of (i) Zone use violations, (ii) if does not confirm to Development plan, (iii)open space earmarked in the layout approval has been sub-divided and sold.
Cased regularised earlier will not be reopened.
The unauthorised layout, which were applied and considered for Regularisation under the Earlier regularisation scheme will be taken up under that scheme only.
