Bhopal draft plan ties commercial property use to road width
Bhopal’s draft Development Plan 2047 proposes road-width-based commercial permissions, limiting full-scale activity on roads under 12 metres and allowing shopping complexes on roads wider than 30 metres, subject to a 20% charge.
The opening
Bhopal's draft Development Plan 2047 proposes road-width-based commercial permissions, barring full-scale activity below 12 metres and allowing shopping complexes on roads wider than 30 metres subject to a 20% charge.
Store and format facts
- 2047
- 12 metres
- 12 to 18 metres
- single floor
- 18 and 24 metres
What it means for the format
Retail operators in Bhopal may need to prioritize sites on roads wider than 12 metres, with large-format complexes most viable on 30-metre-plus corridors despite the proposed 20% charge.
Next on the rollout
- Formal notification, approval timeline and final text of Bhopal Development Plan 2047.
- Whether the 12m and 30m thresholds remain unchanged after consultations.
- Details of the 20% charge: calculation base, payer, exemptions, timing and applicability to existing properties.
- Grandfathering rules for operating stores and under-construction projects on narrower roads.
- Road-widening plans, transit investments and infrastructure upgrades that could move parcels into higher-permission categories.
The counter-case
The draft plan may have limited near-term impact: enforcement could be uneven, existing-use rights may grandfather many properties, and developers may adapt through mixed-use, aggregation, or political exemptions. The 20% charge on roads above 30 metres could also deter formal large-format projects rather than redirect them, while demand and land prices may matter more than road-width rules in determining retail viability.