According to the zoning plan, out of the 12.5 acres of land under it, DLF was allowed 20 per cent area for support services such as food, retail and entertainment. “Certain objections were raised to changes made by DLF in the building plan approved by the administration. The revised building plan was submitted by DLF in August-September last year and was approved by the administration in November,” said M S Brar, Director, Chandigarh Information Technology.

Said Puneet Khullar DLF Chief Manager (Retail Marketing), “UT Administration is very particular about violation of rules. Since it was our first mall outside the National Capital Region, we experienced a few problems”.

Even the TDI group, which is developing a mall in Chandigarh’s Sector 17, was told to strictly adhere to the floor area ratio allowed by the administration.

Fun Republic, too, has removed all its constructions which violate the administration’s norms. “Even minor changes are not allowed by the administration’s technical team. But the file has to travel all the way up to the senior management. Also, too many agencies are involved in granting approval which results in delays. Since most developers operate on bank finance, the cost of construction escalates many times over if approvals are delayed,” said a mall developer.