Indore : In a move that people described as ‘unjust’, the Indore Development Authority on Tuesday announced plans to levy a daily fine of Rs 1000 on the plot owners for failing to carry out any kind of construction, six years after getting possessing of the plot in its residential schemes.
The move came after the IDA discovered that many people purchased land in their schemes as part of their investment plan, which was against its very objective of providing plots to residents at reasonable rates.
“We have decided to invoke MP Development Authority property rules against deviant plot owners of our schemes. The rules empower development authorities to cancel allocation of plots to the owners who did not construct buildings as per the approved map, four years from the date of taking possession of the plots,” IDA Chairman Shankar Lalwani.
Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (CREDAI) Indore Secretary AtuL Jhanwar equated the move to shooting self on the foot.
“The move would discourage people from investing in IDA’s several schemes. Several buy plots to as a long term investment and the IDA is discouraging the same,” he said.
In an advertisement published in newspapers on Tuesday, the IDA stated that it would consider request of the deviant plot owners of refraining from re-allocating their plots, only if they pay compounding fees of Rs 3000 (EWS people), Rs 5000 (residential property) and Rs 10000 (commercial or any other property) per year.
In addition to this, the IDA said that it would levy a fine of Rs 1000 per day on the plot owners who do not construct structures on at least 10 per cent of the allocated land. The fine will be levied till 10 per cent of construction is done.
CA Kamlesh Mishra, who owns a plot in one of the residential scheme of IDA, cried foul over the IDA’s decision.
He said that the IDA had not provided basic amenities in many of its residential schemes. So, spending money on construction of houses is worthless. “What about the plots those were bought five years ago and the IDA didn’t provide any basic amenities there? Who’ll be responsible for it,” said, Chairman Amrapali Group, Prem Mishra.
But Lalwani maintained that the provisions of the Act were not implemented by the IDA so far. It will be strictly implemented from June 1.
Former CREDAI President Gopal Goyal went to the extent of questioning whether IDA will enforce the law on itself.
“Would it maintain the same behavior with the vacant plots in its own holding? Why there isn’t construction works initiated there. Legal advice would be taken for the decision,” he asked.
