The Gates: Approvals, GFC, Tender and Completion

Stages describe work. Gates describe decisions. At each gate something is frozen, and after it, changes need a formal process and usually cost money.

G1: Design sign-off

The owner signs off the layout and elevations. This is the cheapest point to change anything. Ask for a signed or clearly approved set (an email or a dated WhatsApp message is better than nothing). Later disputes often begin with "I never agreed to this layout".

G2: Sanction, through municipal online plan scrutiny

Most Indian cities now take building-plan applications online. The process differs by state, but the pattern is similar:

• The architect prepares the sanction drawings in a prescribed CAD layer format. Each layer means something: plot boundary, building footprint, setbacks, parking.
• Scrutiny software reads the file and checks rules automatically: FSI or FAR, setbacks, height, parking, open space. AutoDCR is one such system used by many local bodies; drawings are often prepared with its PreDCR add-in for AutoCAD.
• A scrutiny officer reviews the report and the documents. Fees are paid. The permission (often called a building permit or commencement certificate) is issued.

Larger projects may also need fire NOC, environmental clearance or airport height clearance. Projects built for sale above the RERA size threshold must also be registered with the state RERA authority.

Key point: the sanction set is not the GFC set. It is simplified for compliance. Never build from it.

G3: GFC issue

GFC means good for construction. A drawing is GFC when the architect, structural engineer and MEP consultant agree, the sanction is in place, and the sheet carries a GFC stamp or status in the title block.

Before GFC, drawings may say "for approval", "for tender" or "preliminary". Tender drawings are good enough to price, not to build. Building from them is one of the most common causes of rework.

G4: Contract award

The contractor is chosen and the price is fixed through a letter of acceptance (LoA) or work order. The BOQ, rates, drawings list and conditions in that document are what you will bill against for the next year. Read them before you sign.

G5: Stage inspections

During construction, some work must be checked before it is covered up. Typical checks:

• Plinth check by the municipal body in many cities.
• Reinforcement check before every slab pour, by the structural engineer or site engineer.
• Pressure tests on plumbing before tiling.

Record each check with a date, a name and photos. Once concrete is poured, the steel is gone from view forever.

G6: Completion and occupancy

When the work is done, the owner or architect applies for a completion certificate and an occupancy certificate (OC). Names vary: some cities issue one document, some two. Without an OC, water and power connections, home loans and resale can get stuck. Deviations from the sanctioned plan surface here, so keep the built work close to the sanction.

A worked example: the cost of skipping G3

A builder starts first-floor columns from a "for approval" structural sheet. Two weeks later the GFC sheet arrives. Two columns change from 230 x 450 mm to 300 x 450 mm.

• Breaking and removing two columns, 3.0 m tall: about 0.62 m³ of concrete. Say ₹4,000 per m³ to break and clear, about ₹2,500.
• Wasted concrete and steel already placed: about ₹6,500.
• Recasting at the new size: about 0.81 m³ at ₹8,500 per m³ (₹6,900) plus extra steel (₹3,000).
• Four days of delay to the slab cycle, with shuttering hire and site overheads at ₹6,000 per day: ₹24,000.

Total: about ₹43,000 for two columns. The rates are illustrative, but the pattern is real: the delay often costs more than the materials.

What comes next

Module 2 moves into the design office: the difference between CAD, 3D modelling and BIM, and what each one can and cannot give you.