RERA to go after new illegal constructions in Chandigarh villages
Villages in Chandigarh have seen a major spurt in new commercial and residential spaces by developers, which come under the scanner of the RERA
The Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA), Chandigarh, is all set to tighten screws on the unbridled illegal construction activity in the city’s villages.
The city’s developed sectoral grid has limited or no new construction activity that can come under the purview of the RERA. But the villages have seen a major spurt in new commercial and residential spaces by developers, most in violation of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, and have thus come under the scanner of the authority.
Anand Kumar, chairman, RERA, Chandigarh, said, “We will put a stop to illegal constructions. Wherever we receive a complaint regarding RERA Act violation, we will take swift action. We can also direct the administration to stop construction in such cases.”
While the older completed constructions, which came up before the enforcement of the RERA Act, are out of authority’s purview, all new and under-construction commercial and residential projects have to register and get approval from the authority.
Under the RERA Act, any developer carving out plots sized over 500 square metres has to register the project with RERA. Similarly, projects comprising more than eight apartments, shops, godowns or units on a plot have to be registered with RERA to protect the interests of consumers and ensure speedy disposal of disputes.
With limited enforcement personnel available with it, RERA, for the time being, is looking at public complaints that can be made to it against such violations.
“We have already issued a public notice in this regard and will issue a fresh one again. We encourage people to come forward and share the factual position on the ground. Their complaints will be kept anonymous,” said Kumar.
The authority is also working on conducting a survey of the constructions taking place in city’s villages.
Widespread illegal constructions
Constructions within and outside lal dora have increased over the years. While within lal dora area, lots of commercial spaces like godowns are coming up, outside, it is mostly residential units. In some instances, complaints of plotted colonisation have also cropped up.
UT adviser Dharam Pal, in a recent press conference, had admitted to widespread construction outside lal dora.
The Punjab New Capital Periphery Control Act restricts constructions in the periphery of around 16 km (controlled area) of the city, which covers the areas outside lal dora. The Punjab and Haryana high court has also imposed restrictions on construction for protection of the Sukhna catchment area.
“Most city villages and semi-urban areas, which include Kishangarh-Manimajra, Hallomajra, Maloya, areas around Bapu Dham near Sukhna Choe, Khuda Ali Sher, Kaimbwala, etc., have unauthorised constructions, which have taken the form of colonies in the recent past, with the land mafia becoming more active. While earlier most of these constructions involved renting out spaces, sale of smaller plots has also come to light now,” said a UT official.