Land under a restriction is usually treated as land lost. UDCPR takes a different approach in several places, and once you see the pattern it is worth checking for on any parcel that is part restricted and part clear.
Key takeaways
- Regulation 4.20 lets the FSI and the receiving potential of defence restricted land be used on the remaining contiguous unaffected land of the same owner.
- It also lets the restricted strip be treated as marginal distance for construction on the contiguous area, so the land does duty twice.
- Regulation 6.13 applies the same principle to land affected by HEMRL restrictions or other Central or State Acts, with subdivision of such land prohibited.
- Regulation 3.1.3 lets FSI of the prohibited strip between a river bank and the blue flood line be used on the remaining land in a Development Zone.
- Regulation 3.5 compensates a handed over amenity space with in-situ FSI on the remaining land, or TDR.
- The hill top and hill slope zone regulation, 4.17, is kept in abeyance, and another zone refers to it.
The pattern
Four separate regulations in three chapters do the same thing. When land is taken out of use by a restriction rather than by acquisition, the development potential attached to it is not extinguished; it moves to the part of the holding that remains usable.
| Restriction | What happens to the FSI |
|---|---|
| Defence restrictive zone, Regulation 4.20(ii) | The FSI and the receiving potential of the land may be used on the remaining contiguous unaffected land of the same owner. The restricted area may also be treated as marginal distance. |
| HEMRL or other Central or State Act restrictions, Regulation 6.13 | FSI of the affected land may be used on the remaining contiguous land. Subdivision of such land is not allowed. |
| Between the river bank and the blue flood line, Regulation 3.1.3(i)(c) | Where that strip forms part of a plot in a Development Zone, its FSI may be used on the remaining land |
| Amenity space handed to the Authority, Regulation 3.5 | In-situ FSI on the remaining land, or TDR if the owner prefers, granted only after transfer is complete |
For anyone valuing a part restricted holding, this is the question to ask before discounting the affected area to zero. The restricted strip may still carry its development potential, and in the defence case it may also discharge the marginal distance obligation for the building next to it.
Two conditions recur and both matter. The remaining land must be contiguous, and in the defence and HEMRL cases it must belong to the same owner. A restriction cutting a holding into two separated parcels is a materially worse position than one clipping an edge.
The defence provision, in full
Chapter 4, Regulation 4.20, Defense Zone has two limbs. The first is ordinary: developments required by the Ministry of Defence are permissible on land owned and possessed by the Ministry or its authorities.
The second is the one that reaches private land. In a restrictive zone, no development in contravention of a notification under the Works of Defence Act, 1903 is permissible, whether the area is earmarked as such on the Development or Regional Plan or not, or development is permissible with a No Objection Certificate from the concerned Defence Authority.
Then the two provisos. It is permissible to treat the area under the restrictive zone as marginal distance when constructing on the contiguous unaffected area. And it is permissible to utilise the FSI, and also the receiving potential, of the land under this zone on the remaining contiguous unaffected land of the same owner.
The phrase "whether earmarked as such on Development Plan / Regional Plan or not" is the part that catches buyers. A defence restriction binds because the notification exists, not because a planner drew it on a map. So the absence of a marking on the plan is not evidence that no restriction applies.
That connects to Regulation 3.1.13, which requires every authority imposing restrictions to give the Planning Authority full details and maps, and requires the Authority to publish them. Those published maps, rather than the Development Plan alone, are where a restriction of this kind should be found.
The zones where building is mostly not the point
Chapter 4, Regulation 4.11, Agricultural Zone* is more permissive than its name suggests. Alongside agricultural uses, stables, piggeries, poultry farms and accessory buildings, it permits golf courses and links, race tracks and shooting ranges with necessary safety measures, trekking routes and nature trails, gardens, forestry, nurseries, public and private parks, play fields and summer camps.
It also admits public and semi-public utility establishments, including electric sub-stations, receiving stations, switch yards, overhead line corridors, radio and television stations, gas distribution stations, sewage treatment and disposal works and water works, along with residential quarters for the essential staff required for such works.
Two commercial uses are permitted on defined terms. An LPG godown is allowed with a minimum plot size as decided by the Licensing Authority, maximum FSI of 20 percent, ground floor structure only, and NOCs from the Controller of Explosives and the competent fire authority. Vehicle fuel filling stations, including LPG, CNG, ethanol and public charging stations, are permitted as well.
Chapter 4, Regulation 4.19, Forest Zone is narrow by comparison: only developments required by the Ministry of Forest or its authorities, on land owned and possessed by them. Chapter 4, Regulation 4.21, Mines and Quarry Zone permits quarrying, mining and stone crushing subject to Regulation 15.1's distances.
A zone whose rules are not in force
Chapter 4, Regulation 4.17, Hill Top - Hill Slope Zone / Hilly Area consists of three words in this edition: kept in abeyance.
That is worth reporting exactly as it stands rather than working around it. The hill top and hill slope zone regulation is not stated in the 30 January 2025 consolidation.
It matters because another zone refers to it. Chapter 4, Regulation 4.18, Green Zone-2 permits, first among its uses, all uses permissible in the Hill Top and Hill Slope Zone, followed by gaothan expansion under Regulation 5.1.1, primary and nursery schools with student hostels, and a list of Regulation 4.11 uses at a maximum FSI of 0.20.
So Green Zone 2's permissions are defined partly by reference to a regulation held in abeyance. Anyone working on hill slope land, or on Green Zone 2 land, needs the Government's current position rather than this chapter, and this article cannot supply it because the consolidation does not.
Converting industrial land
Chapter 4, Regulation 4.8.1, Allowing Residential / Commercial Uses in Industrial Zone* is the other route by which restricted-feeling land becomes ordinary, and it carries obligations rather than a simple permission. Land allocated for industrial use up to 1.0 hectare may be permitted for residential use or any other use permissible in a Residential or Commercial Zone, with the owner providing either 10 percent amenity space as open land or 5 percent built up space, preferably on the ground floor, and amenity TDR is permissible.
On a layout or subdivision of such land, 10 percent of land for public utilities and amenities up to 2 ha, and 15 percent for the area above 2 ha, must be provided, handed over free of encumbrances, in addition to recreational open space. At least 50 percent of that amenity land must be reserved for unbuildable purposes such as a garden or recreational ground, and where the amenity space is under 1000 sq m it must be entirely unbuildable.
Segregating distance between the industrial zone and the newly residential area must be provided within the land being converted, though not where the adjoining industrial user is non-obnoxious. And the residential or commercial development is allowed within the permissible FSI of the nearby Residential or Commercial Zone.
Nagpur modifies this provision through Regulation 10.3.3, at a premium of 15 percent of the developed land ASR rate, with different terms for NIT and NMC leased plots.
What to check
- On a part restricted holding, ask where the FSI goes before writing the affected area off.
- Test contiguity and common ownership, since both conditions recur.
- Do not rely on the Development Plan alone for a defence restriction, because the notification binds whether or not it is marked.
- On hill slope or Green Zone 2 land, obtain the Government's current position on 4.17, which the consolidation keeps in abeyance.
- For an industrial conversion, price the amenity obligation and the segregating distance, not only the FSI.
Where the filings come in
Zoning is answered by the Development Plan, and restrictions by the notifications behind them. The register answers a different and useful question: what has actually been registered on comparable land nearby.
Every MahaRERA filing at reragenie.com is free to read and carries the filed land area, the buildings and their floors, the promoter's extension history with the reasons given, the certifying professionals, and any complaints or litigation with case numbers.
ReraGenie's project analysis, Rs 2,999 for one project, reads the full filing and the documents behind it. The area consolidated report covers a whole micro-market at Rs 2,999 for the first project and Rs 1,999 per additional one.
Source: Unified Development Control and Promotion Regulations for Maharashtra, UDCPR as updated 30 January 2025. Sanctioned under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966.
Evaluating a micro-market or a land parcel?
The ReraGenie project analysis reads every filing in your competitive set: supply, absorption, pricing and promoter records. Rs 2,999 per project, area consolidated reports from Rs 2,999.
See the project analysis