Tag: Real Estate Developers

Real estate related cases highest at consumer court

GURGAON: In a city which boasts of highest number of consumer grievances in the state, cases of insurance default and real estate invariably occupy the top slot.

The Times of India get a large number of cases related to real estate. The number of consumers approaching us for non-delivery of flats in times has been increasing. We have a number of cases of cheating by the builders. This includes even the top builders in the city. We have several cases of builders who are repeat offenders. We have issued arrest warrants against them as well,” said an official of the Gurgaon district consumer disputes redressal forum.

The official said consumers also approached the forum with complaints against HUDA relating to disputes of plots.

“In Gurgaon, consumers are more educated about their rights. Of late, we have solved several cases relating their real estate,” said Raghvinder Singh Bahmani, president, district consumer disputes redressal forum, Gurgaon.

Consumer disputes relating to airlines and travel tourism, especially holiday clubs and resorts, is also higher in Gurgaon compared to cities in the state.

“The reason is that large number of technocrats, CEOs and top MNC officials keep visiting different countries. Case relating to airfare, baggage and deficiencies of the services of the resorts are much higher in Gurgaon. We have 19 cases relating to airlines and several cases against top resorts in the country,” said an official from the forum.

Cases relating to mobile phones, automobile, Bank ATM and Postal Delivery are also higher in Gurgaon compared to cities in the state.

Source: The Times of India

Approach coastal zone authority, HC tells CIDCO

In a petition by the City Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) seeking removal of mangroves that cover 80 per cent of the 220 hectares of holding ponds in Navi Mumbai, Bombay High Court Wednesday directed it to make an application before the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) that will, after a site inspection, make the necessary recommendation to the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF).

CIDCO had moved court seeking permission to remove mangrove cover from the six holding ponds in the Dronagiri node for desilting. It submitted that the Dronagri node, opened for development in 1989, comprises mainly residential, port-based industries and warehousing over about 64 acres. The holding ponds are connected with channels to discharge storm water during high tide.

CIDCO’s counsel G S Hegde told the court that the growth of mangroves in holding ponds cannot be covered by a Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification of January 2011, as it cannot be held as natural growth of mangrove under the notification. Although the notification had forbidden removal of mangroves from ponds, the notification did not use the word “holding” ponds. CIDCO contended that it, therefore, did not require the sanction of MoEF to remove the mangroves.

MoEF counsel Rui Rodrigues said the ponds, as stated in the notification, would cover all ponds including holding ponds and hence, CIDCO cannot proceed with destruction of mangroves. Holding ponds are also affected by tidal events, Rodrigues said countering CIDCO’s claim that mangroves on holding ponds are not natural.

In 2010, Bombay High Court, in a PIL filed by Bombay Environmental Action Group (BEAG), had imposed a ban on “non-forest activities” in mangrove areas in the state.

BEAG, while opposing CIDCO’s plea, referred to the CRZ notification of 2011, which said mangrove areas in excess of 1,000 sq m were classified as CRZ-1 and required a buffer zone of 50 m. Desilting the holding ponds would result in the destruction of 8,80,000 fully grown mangroves and hence it should not be allowed, it had contended.

Chief Justice Mohit Shah and Justice M S Sanklecha asked CIDCO to approach MCZMA within a week. MCZMA, which will carry out a site inspection, has been directed to make a recommendation to the MoEF in three weeks. The court directed MoEF to take a decision in four weeks after receiving MCZMA’s recommendation.

Source: The Indian Express

Realty Bill welcome, but concerns remain: Developers

PUNE: Real estate sector experts have said the Real Estate Regulatory Bill, which was passed by the Union Cabinet passed on 4th june, was a welcome move and will pave the way in bringing higher level of transparency and accountability from the developer community, which for long, has been either self-regulated or working on best practices principles. However, some feel the bill should be understood with reference to business practices prevailing in different parts of the country.

Provisions such as opening a dedicated bank account for every project, strict penal action for delays and registration of brokers have been received well. The bill also provides for mandatory public disclosure of all project details like credentials of promoters, layout plan, land status, carpet area, number of apartments booked and status of statutory approvals, which addresses major concerns of the buyers about incomplete or fraudulent land acquisitions and pending clearances.

Sanjay Dutt, managing director ( South Asia) of real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield, said the bill would institutionalize the sector, giving it the necessary fillip to move to a new phase of growth and development. “Besides protecting interests of end users, we also see this working positively in terms of attracting investments from domestic and international firms, which were skeptical about investing in Indian real estate sector due to lack of regulation,” he said.

“After the bill comes into force, we may see a noticeable slowdown in launches of new projects in the short and medium run, as getting all the necessary permissions is a long and tedious process. This may delay the entire process of launching a project unless the government comes up with administrative reforms to speed up the proceedings,” he added.

However, Rohit Gera, vice-president of Credai Pune Metro, said while there is a need to set up a better mechanism for customer protection against fly by night operators, practical “on the ground” aspects should also be taken into account. Also, the bill seeks to streamline the real estate business in North India, where the entire transaction process is different, he said.

“Currently, there is a backlog of 18 months for the single committee approving the projects, which require clearance from the environment perspective. I am extremely concerned if each and every project requires approval, which will delay their arrival in the market. This will lead to increased costs being passed on to the consumer. The delays will also create an artificial shortage, which will further increase the prices,” he added.

Hemant Naiknavare, president, Credai Pune Metro, said the union government’s bill has been drafted without really understanding the sector as a whole. “We are still unclear what will come in the bill. The state assembly too has passed the Maharashtra Housing (Regulation & Development) Bill, 2012, which is waiting for Union government’s nod. The state’s bill is approved with a lot of unanimity and we want that the Union government first approves the state bill and when the central bill comes into force, the state bill should be incorporated,” he said.

Firdose Vandrevala, chairman, Confederation of Indian Industry’s national committee on real estate and housing, said, “Retaining amounts realized from customers and placing them in banks would affect the cash flows for projects and more so for metropolitan cities, where land cost component is significant and already paid by the promoter. If at all such an account is to be maintained, the limit should be on the lower side and include payment of interest and EMI pertaining to loans availed for construction of the said project.”

Sticking points

* A possible slowdown in launches of new projects in the short and medium run

* The bill seeks to streamline the real estate business in North India, where the entire transaction process is different

* Retaining amounts realized from customers and placing them in banks likely to affect the cash flows for projects

* If each and every project requires approval, it will lead to increased costs being passed on to the consumer

* Confusion over the bill’s clarity as the state assembly too has passed the Maharashtra Housing (Regulation & Development) Bill, 2012

Source: The Times of India

Relief to builders, Centre relaxes green norms for high-rises

NEW DELHI: In what will be a big relief to builders in tightly-packed cities such as Mumbai, the environment ministry has done away with green clearances for high-rise buildings based on the width of the roads that they fall by the side of and the distance from fire-stations. It has left it to the state government to makes rules as they deem fit.

The move comes after several state governments — and Maharashtra in particular — had pleaded with the Union government to remove the regulations that the builders had strongly opposed.

The relaxation is expected to allow builders to put up higher multi-storey buildings on smaller roads and lanes in cities.

The rules required buildings above 60 metres can secure an environment clearance if they were on roads at least 30 metre wide. Such buildings had to be located within 2km of a fire station. Buildings between 45 and 60 metres needed to have an approach road that is at least 24 metres wide and at not more than 5km from a fire station. Buildings between 30 and 45 metres had to be located on roads at least 18 metres wide with fire stations not more than 10km away. Buildings between 15 and 30 metres required a 15-metre wide approach road, but no restriction linked to presence of fire stations was placed. The February 2012 regulations also required a no objection certificate (NOC) from the state fire department and the national or state disaster management authorities.

The provisions had been brought in considering safety measures for high rise buildings and increase in traffic in cities.

But after a lot of criticism that found support in the PMO, the environment ministry set up a committee under Planning Commission member K Kasturirangan to review these norms and other clearance conditions applicable to roads, SEZs and the real estate sector. The panel recommended doing away with the regulations and leaving it to the state governments to regulate the safety codes.

Source: The Economic Times