Succumbing to intense pressure from developers, realtors, farmers and property buyers, the Gujarat Government has rolled back its sudden February 4 decision to double the jantri (circle) rates and put off its implementation until April 15, 2023, after considering all suggestions and opinions.
The State Government’s Saturday announcement is expected to witness a rush to close pending property deals, sales deeds and clearances pending with the government before April 15. Welcoming the decision, various builder associations said this would also help give a fillip to the State’s income since the developers who wish to buy additional floor space index (FSI) for their upcoming projects would do so now quickly.
Similarly, the postponement will leave time for those who wish to convert their land from new tenure to old tenure before any increase in the rates.
This is because the State Government currently charges a premium of 40% on the jantri value to buy additional FSI for construction, while it charges an equal amount to convert land from new tenure to old tenure.
According to builder associations, who are happy that their representations to the government over this sudden and steep rise in jantri rates have borne fruit, this would help both the developers as well as the buyers of residential property who may have booked land and houses from their hard-earned money.
Industry sources say that residential projects worth around Rs 40,000 crore are in various phases and at least half of them are in the affordable housing segment. By the same argument, they are demanding that instead of 100% increase the government should hike the rates by 50% by following a scientific survey process instead of an ad hoc decision.
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