CHENNAI: The Third Master Plan for the city is likely to be published in 2027, with the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) preparing to invite tenders for an international agency to review the plan.

The draft of Third Master Plan-2026-47 for the proposed expanded Chennai Metropolitan Area (CMA) was initially slated to be released in January 2026. "We are going to call for tenders for an international agency, which will happen in six months. We can expect the plan to be out by 2027," said a CMDA official.

The authority is identifying major corridors where higher Floor Space Index (FSI) could be permitted, but the extent of any increase would depend on infrastructure capacity, particularly drinking water supply and sewage networks. "CMDA is assessing these constraints before deciding which areas could accommodate greater development density," the official said.

The FSI increase for high-rises in Chennai came into focus following the State government's latest amendment to the Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019, which retained the cited normal high-rise FSI limits of 2.0 for qualifying 12 m wide roads, 2.5 for 15 m wide roads and 3.25 for 18 m wide roads.

The CMDA says that many builders were not coming forward to utilise the current maximum permissible FSI due to setback requirements and the need for sufficiently large land parcels.

"Densification has not happened in Chennai, and that's actually why the city does not suffer from traffic bottlenecks. However, the third master plan will identify corridors where such densification will be feasible and increase the vertical growth," the official added.