Hearings on nearly 13,000 objections to the draft Bhopal Master Plan 2047 will begin on November 16. The Town and Country Planning Department will conduct the hearings through both online and offline modes. A meeting to discuss the process was held at the Collectorate on Thursday in the presence of elected representatives and officials. The department had invited claims, objections and suggestions until October 25 following the release of the draft plan. More than 16,000 submissions were received, of which nearly 3,000 were duplicates filed by the same individuals through both online and offline channels. After removing these, around 13,000 objections remain for hearing.

 

Proposed changes to the land use of agricultural areas surrounding Upper Lake have raised concerns among farmers. Farmer Anokhi Singh Patel has demanded the removal of Bhojtal Conservation Zones BIZ-1 and BIZ-2 from the draft plan and retention of agricultural land use. He said farming remained the primary source of livelihood for local farmers and their land should continue to be reserved for agriculture. The meeting was attended by MP Alok Sharma, MLA Bhagwandas Sabnani, Mayor Malti Rai, ADM Prakash Nayak, Joint Director of Town and Country Planning Anand Mohan Likhar, village sarpanches and other officials.