Rainwater Harvesting and Green Rules for a House Plot in UP

In an Uttar Pradesh development authority area, the 2025 bye-laws make a rooftop rainwater harvesting system compulsory on plots of 300 sq m and more, and do not require one on smaller plots. In October 2025, however, Amar Ujala reported that the Chief Minister had ordered rainwater harvesting to be made mandatory in all buildings larger than 100 sq m. The bye-law text we read does not say so yet, so on any plot over 100 sq m, plan for it.

Seedhi baat: UP me 300 sq m ya usse bade plot par chhat ke baarish ke paani ka harvesting zaroori hai. 100 sq m se bade ghar ke liye CM ka nirdesh bhi aaya hai, isliye naksha banate waqt recharge pit ki jagah rakhiye.

These are UP's bye-laws for development authority areas; your state's rules may differ. UP's regulated areas work under a separate 1958 Act, as our UP map approval guide explains.

Rainwater harvesting in the bye-laws

Clause 13.1.2 names two methods: storing rainwater on the surface for later use, and recharging it into the ground. For individual plots:

• New layouts: on plots of 100 to 300 sq m, a house need not have its own system if the colony's rainwater flows into the scheme's shared recharge network. On plots over 300 sq m, the owner must install one.
• Building plans: where there is no shared network, plots of 300 sq m and more need a rooftop system, except in waterlogged areas.
• Waterlogged areas: no recharge into the ground; roof water may be collected and stored instead.
• Quality: the system lets rainwater soak to the required depth without polluting ground water.

Two more rules apply to every house, whatever its size:

• Roof drainage (clause 3.3.1.7): the roof slopes to rainwater pipes, fixed outside the walls or in chases, with screens at the inlets, and the pipes connect to a drain, a road gutter or a rainwater harvesting structure.
• Drawings (clauses 2.3.5 and 2.3.6): the site plan shows water supply, drainage and any rooftop rainwater harvesting, and the building plan shows the provisions for rainwater harvesting, solar water heating, wastewater recycling and waste management.

Building a rainwater harvesting structure, including an underground tank, needs no separate building permit (clause 2.5.1).

The UP Ground Water (Management and Regulation) Act 2019 backs this up. Its section 31 says the Municipal Water Management Committee shall impose the conditions for rooftop rainwater harvesting under the building bye-laws, as notified by the state, and that these bind the agencies that approve building plans.

The 100 sq m order: what we know

On 4 October 2025, Amar Ujala reported that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, at a high-level meeting, directed that rainwater harvesting be made mandatory in all buildings larger than 100 sq m, in towns and villages. The report describes an instruction. It does not say whether 100 sq m means the plot or the built-up area, and we have not seen the bye-laws amended to match. The two sources disagree on the threshold, so ask your development authority which one it applies when you file.

Trees on the plot

Clause 13.7 asks for a landscape plan with the site plan, showing:

• Plot under 200 sq m: one tree
• 200 to 300 sq m: two trees
• 301 to 500 sq m: four trees
• Over 500 sq m: one tree per 100 sq m or part of it

Grown trees that you keep reduce the number. The applicant also pays a tree plantation deposit at the authority's rates, refunded after five years if the trees have grown and been looked after.

Solar and energy

• Solar panels (13.2.3.1): compulsory on plots of 500 sq m and more, and encouraged on smaller ones.
• Roof space (13.2.3): in new buildings, 25–50% of the roof area may be used for solar water heaters and panels.
• Solar water heating (13.2.3.2): required for hotels, hospitals, schools, hostels and similar buildings; private houses are not on the list.
• Height and permits: rooftop structures for solar energy need no separate permit (2.5.1) and are not counted in the building's height (3.2.3).
• Energy code (13.2): UP's energy code for large buildings does not apply to private homes. For homes, the bye-laws adopt BEE's Eco-Niwas Samhita 2024 and encourage cool roofs on buildings above 500 sq m of built-up area.

Waste and wastewater

Every building has to separate dry and wet waste at source (clause 13.4). A wastewater recycling plant is required only where a plot discharges more than 10,000 litres a day (clause 13.5). At the 200 litres per person a day that BIS's IS 1172 gives as the top of its range for large towns, that is about 50 people, far more than one family.

Green rating bonus

A building rated green gets extra FAR on the FAR it uses (clause 9.3): 3% for GRIHA three-star, IGBC Silver or an equal rating, 5% for four-star or Gold, and 7% for five-star or Platinum. The bonus is given after pre-certification, and if the rating is not achieved by occupancy, the penalty is twice the land cost at the circle rate for the extra FAR.

What this means by plot size

In a UP development authority area:

• Under 100 sq m (about 120 gaj): no rainwater harvesting needed under the bye-laws; roof pipes still run to a drain; one tree.
• 100 to 300 sq m: the bye-laws do not require rainwater harvesting, but the October 2025 order may; one or two trees.
• 300 to 500 sq m: rooftop rainwater harvesting required; two trees up to 300 sq m and four above.
• 500 sq m and more: rainwater harvesting and solar panels; above 500 sq m, one tree per 100 sq m.

On a small plot, see what else the rules allow in 100 gaj plot par kitni manzil, and how to file in naksha pass kaise karaye.

Where it goes in the drawings

Rainwater pipes, terrace drainage and the recharge pit or tank belong in the plumbing drawing, so they are not decided on site. Our plumbing design covers rainwater pipes and terrace drainage, and our construction drawings are ready in 5 working days.

Common questions

Kya 100 gaj plot par rainwater harvesting zaroori hai?

100 gaj lagbhag 83.6 sq m hai. 2025 ke bye-laws me 300 sq m se chhote plot par zaroori nahi. October 2025 ke nirdesh me 100 sq m se bade buildings ki baat hai; agar built-up area gina jaye to do manzil ka 100 gaj ka ghar usse upar ho sakta hai, isliye authority se poochhiye.

How many trees must I plant on a house plot in UP?

One on a plot under 200 sq m, two on 200 to 300 sq m, four on 301 to 500 sq m, and one per 100 sq m above that.

Is rooftop solar compulsory for a house in UP?

Only on plots of 500 sq m and more. The bye-laws encourage it on smaller plots.

Do I need permission to build a rainwater tank or recharge pit?

No separate building permit, under clause 2.5.1 of the bye-laws. It still has to be shown in the plans you file.

Sources

• Uttar Pradesh Model Building Construction and Development Byelaws 2025 (3 July 2025): §2.3.5, §2.3.6, §2.5.1, §3.2.3, §3.3.1.7, §9.3, §13.1.2, §13.2, §13.2.3, §13.4, §13.5, §13.7 — http://gdaghaziabad.in/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/UP-Model-Building-Bylaws-2025_3July_250704_125142-1.pdf
• Uttar Pradesh Ground Water (Management and Regulation) Act 2019 (U.P. Act 13 of 2019), section 31 — https://www.thc.nic.in/Central%20Governmental%20Acts/Uttar%20Pradesh%20Ground%20Water%20(Management%20and%20Regulation)%20Act,%202019.pdf
• Amar Ujala, Lucknow, 4 October 2025: rainwater harvesting to be mandatory in buildings larger than 100 sq m — https://www.amarujala.com/lucknow/up-cm-yogi-orders-rainwater-harvesting-to-be-mandatory-in-buildings-larger-than-100-square-meters-potters-ex-2025-10-04
• Bureau of Indian Standards, IS 1172:1993, clause 4.1 — https://archive.org/details/gov.in.is.1172.1993

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