Centre withdraws seismic zone notification; developers hail move

Ahmedabad: Following the advice of the Union cabinet secretariat on Tuesday, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), department of consumer Affairs, has withdrawn its Nov 2025 Gazette notification that had revised the country's earthquake-resistant design standards, specifically the seventh revision of IS 1893 (Part 1): 2025, which also included an update of the seismic zonation map for India. The real estate sector across Gujarat has breathed a collective sigh of relief following the withdrawal on Tuesday. The cabinet had issued an advisory on Tuesday that the "department of consumer affairs is hereby advised to withdraw the gazette notification... All necessary consultations with stakeholders... may be held and completed in the first instance, before any further steps are taken to revise IS 1893".
As a result, the 2025 notification stands withdrawn with immediate effect, and IS 1893 (Part 1): 2016 remains valid for designers and developers. When the BIS notification was first issued in Nov 2025, it elevated major cities like Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, and Rajkot to Seismic Zone 4, mandating stricter ductile detailing and earthquake-resistant designs. While most civic bodies observed a transition window, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) mandated immediate compliance under BIS's revised ‘Design Earthquake Hazard and Criteria for Earthquake-Resistant Design Structures - Code of Practice' via its circular on Jan 19, refusing to pass plans under old BIS codes.This created a problem for developers, who argued that switching standards mid-stream for projects in advanced planning was "technically unfeasible" and would spike construction costs by 20%. The issue had stalled approximately 15 major high-rise projects in Ahmedabad. The intervention by the Union cabinet secretariat followed a Feb 2026 warning from the Union ministry of housing and urban affairs (MoHUA) regarding "technical and financial concerns" of the IS 1893:2025 code. The cabinet's office memorandum stated the revision "materially affects the design and execution of ongoing and future infrastructure projects including that of metro rail projects". It further noted that the financial implications for ongoing metro works could range from "30% to 50% across metro cities" and that the code was "introduced without structured consultation with metro rail corporations". Rajesh Vaswani, chairman of Credai Ahmedabad, hailed the withdrawal. "The decision to withdraw the notification is a welcome step because the new codes were prepared without consultation with stakeholders. Also, the sudden implementation created issues for structural engineers as well. The new codes, if implemented, could increase construction costs by 20%."