The Chandigarh Municipal Corporation (MC) has proposed a 100-fold increase in penalty charges for encroachment on greenbelts (government land) adjacent to residential houses.
Besides this, the civic body has also proposed increasing the licence fee from Rs 0.25 per sq ft per year to Rs 2 per sq ft per year for erecting or re-erecting hedges on municipal land adjoining residential areas on the road berms of V-5 and V-6 roads.
The agenda for revising the fees is being placed before the General House meeting of the MC scheduled for Monday.
The proposal states that at present, the MC levies a fine of Rs 50 for breach of any provision of the Chandigarh (Control and Regulation of Hedges and Fences) Bye-laws, 1971.
The charges were fixed in 1971 and have not been revised since then.
The MC has now proposed increasing the fine from Rs 50 to Rs 5,000 for violation of any provision of the bye-laws.
The civic body has also cited an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court dated March 7, 2026, regarding encroachment on government land. While hearing a writ petition related to such encroachments, the High Court directed the UT Administration to expedite the process of revising and reviewing the penalty amount of Rs 50 for encroachments and to consider other penal measures to deter residents from repeatedly encroaching upon public areas and greenbelts.
The High Court observed that the fine of Rs 50, fixed in 1971, is an insufficient deterrent in view of prevailing income standards and therefore requires revision.
Facing a shortage of funds, the Chandigarh MC has been taking several steps to increase its revenue. As part of its revenue-generation efforts, it has proposed increasing the licence fee from Rs 0.25 per sq ft per year to Rs 2 per sq ft per year for erecting or re-erecting hedges on municipal land adjoining residential areas on the road berms of V-5 and V-6 roads.
The Horticulture Wing is entrusted with granting licences under the Chandigarh (Control and Regulation of Hedges and Fences) Bye-laws, 1971, for erecting or re-erecting hedges and fences on government land adjoining residential buildings.
The Secretary Estate, Chandigarh Administration, has appointed the Superintending Engineer, Horticulture and Electrical, Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh, as the Licensing Officer to grant permission for erecting or re-erecting hedges and fences on municipal land in accordance with the provisions of the 1971 bye-laws.
