Author: Ashwini Priolker

Amaravati, Chandrababu Naidu’s dream capital in Andhra Pradesh, faces a huge hurdle — lack of capital

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Amaravati is a city framed in constant motion — or shall we say construction? Large swathes of barren land are tossed over and trampled by bulldozers and trucks that snake afar, in preparation for a massive building frenzy. Workers are hard at work, prompted into continual action by orders barked by contractors. It is rugged, dusty terrain now, but the promise of a succession of modern buildings has attracted a gaggle of buses packed with visitors.

Amaravati is Andhra Pradesh’s new capital city, coming up on the banks of the river Krishna. The need for a new capital was prompted by the decision of the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to carve the state into two — Andhra and Telangana — in 2014. Hyderabad, the existing capital, was to be shared between them for 10 years after which Telangana would get sole rights. A year later, the foundation stone for Amaravati was laid.

The capital holds the promise of grandeur. Spread over 217 square kilometer, Rs 48,000 crore will be sunk into just the first phase. The master plan has been designed by the Singapore government and several international consultants have also poured their insights into the development.

Amaravati is poised to be not just a smart city but also a happy one. Nine thematic districts — based on sports, government, finance, tourism, health, knowledge, electronics, justice and media — each self-contained with school, hospitals retails and offices will be built on sustainable green building techniques. Water canals will run through the city. Space has been devoted for evehicles and cycling tracks. The aim — to be one of the top three happy cities of the world. Also in the works is a start-up area, all of which sprout on 1,691 acres in three phases.

That’s not all. With a raft of underground utilities, the state government plans to make the city dig-free for at least 100 years.

N Chandrababu Naidu, chief minister, Andhra Pradesh is optimistic about the progress of the city. “We are going in a fast-track manner,” he says.

But fulfilling ambitions of this magnitude needs money. Lots. So far the government has managed to raise Rs 2,000 crore through municipal bonds. Talks are on with World Bank and HUDCO for more debt financing.

Capital remains the biggest obstacle to Naidu’s dream capital. Promised funding from the central government is no longer available. Funding has been the bone of contention between Naidu and the centre; so much so that Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP) parted ways with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) coalition of parties.

A mock-up of the capital.

But S Shan Mohan, chief executive officer, Amravati Smart City, remains sanguine. “While we were expecting some support from the centre, we had a parallel plan where we tie up most of our funding using multilateral agencies and private banks. Our entire housing project is based on private bank tie-ups,” he said.

How The Government Got Land

Money may be a problem, but the Andhra Pradesh government has at least one thing going for it — land. In the last four years since the city was conceived, the government has successfully aggregated 34,000 acres of land from almost 28,000 farmers.

This makes it one of the largest land pooling schemes in the world. Currently, 52,000 acres are in the state government’s possession.

Tardy land acquisition has been the bane of development projects in India. Most states find it extremely difficult to acquire land for several of their developmental projects due to the protective clauses of the Land Acquisition Act of 2013. How then did Andhra Pradesh succeed?

Instead of trying to buy land, the government “pooled” the land from farmers. Farmers voluntarily gave their land to the government in return of residential and commercial plots. Farmers will also get annuity for the next 10 years depending on the size of their land holdings. They were also persuaded by potential social benefits such as health and education and livelihood transition.

Land pooling has proved to be faster and more efficient that the tradition land acquisition method, which is time consuming as well as complicated. Land pooling is bereft of disputes of compensation associated with traditional land acquisition methods; the financial burden on the government is also lessened.

Andhra Pradesh is hardly the first state in India to pursue land pooling. Several states have managed to secure land in this manner, notably Uttar Pradesh.

But Andhra Pradesh is arguably the fastest to do so. More than 33,599 acres have been pooled from 27,365 farmers. That translates to 90 percent of the land required for the development of Amaravati.

Naidu is grateful. “Nowhere in a democratic country in the world have farmers voluntarily given 33,000 acre of land,” he said.

But there are a significant number of landless farmers who used to work as labourers who have lost their livelihood after the lands were pooled. The state government is providing them with annuity and skill development programmes.

There are also worries, due to the souring of relationship between the state and central government, that the fortunes of farmers who have volunteered to give their land will be impacted.

Some of the farmers CNBC-TV18 spoke to said they have faith in Naidu.

“We have given the land because of our trust on the CM. We are confident that CM manage to bring money to build this capital city,” says Polu Kalyan Chakravarthy.

The Other Side

Not all farmers are as happy as Chakravarthy. Two of the 29 villages that the state government has identified for the scheme are yet to give their land.

According to agriculture experts, the area between Guntur and Vijayawada, which been earmarked for Amaravati, is one of the most fertile belts of the state.

An agriculture expert said taking away fertile land will not just have environmental ramifications but will also hamper the food security of the state. “Moreover, the transition of farmers to non-agricultural activities is not a cakewalk. Without proper training and employment opportunities it is going to be extremely difficult. It is quite clear that the government is acting like a realtor,” he said on the condition of anonymity.

The farmers opposed to land pooling agree. In a telephonic interview, a farmer who owns significant amount of land in one of the villages said around 1,600 farmers have resisted the land pooling efforts of the government.

Another farmer said he is worried what will happen to his land when the government changes. “Of the thousands of farmers who have given their land, how many of them know English and our educated enough to read the fine print of the scheme? Till now we can only see 3D videos of the project and crores of rupees have been just wasted on marketing.”

Both of them spoke on the condition of anonymity.

A report published by Centre for Financial Accountability (CFA) in 2017, notes that “the stretch along the Krishna on which Amaravati will be built is a highly fertile floodplain – or a catchment area that replenishes itself naturally during rainfall and flooding, maintaining the water level of the soil, as well as the flow and ecology of the river, by continuously absorbing and discharging water”. Constructing on a floodplain would destroy that natural system of absorption and discharge and severely raise the risk of flash flooding, according to the report.

Members of an outfit called National Alliance of People’s Movement have also been raising the issues of discrimination towards Dalit farmers, small and marginal cultivators who have lost their land and source of livelihood due to Amaravati.

Many others have also questioned the need to have a new capital in the first place. Former agriculture Minister Vadde Sobhanadreeswara Rao said the government should have a decentralized approach towards the development of the state of Andhra Pradesh instead of just focusing on a capital city.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

MHADA to approve redevelopment proposals within 90 days

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

In order to expedite the process of redevelopment of housing societies belonging to Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), in Mumbai, the authority has come up with a circular which states that any redevelopment proposal will have to be cleared within 90 days.

“This has been done to reduce the delay in clearing the proposals and also to make MHADA more efficient. Now there will be a strict deadline at every stage of clearance and if the officer is not able to adhere to the deadline, explanation will be asked from him/her,” says Madhu Chavan, MHADA’s Mumbai board chairman.

Why is this circular important?

MHADA has 56 colonies and 114 layouts all over Mumbai.  Some of the colonies are in dilapidated condition and require redevelopment. Many times due to administrative delays the projects get delayed for months. The new circular aims to address this major concern.

The move has been welcomed by the real estate industry as well.

“The offer letter by the MHADA is a very crucial document without it the builder cannot start any redevelopment work. Therefore, this is a welcome move and it will definitely help people who want to go for self-redevelopment as now everything will be done in a time bound manner, said Nayan Shah, President, CREDAI-MCHI.

Now that the  90 days’ timeline has been prescribed, it will lead to at least 20-25 percent savings in the interest cost, he said.

“This is a very good approach. Earlier it used to take 9-12 months to get the offer letter from MHADA. This move will also help in ease of doing business if it is followed properly,” Vilas Nagalkar, architect and member, Practising Engineers, Architects and Town Planners Associations (PEATA).

How will this circular help?

According to the new circular, every proposal will go through nine stages of clearances and every stage will have a strict deadline. Once a society submits the proposal, within three days it has to reach the next level for clearance.

In this new circular, even senior level officers like the chief officer, chief architect and even vice president have to adhere to the strict timeline.

MHADA claims that although 90 days is the maximum time period if the timelines are strictly adhered to, proposals can be cleared even within 70 days.

Meanwhile, Chavan has also written a letter to the chief minister asking him to bring rehabilitation projects under Maha RERA.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Mumbai DCPR 2034 Implemented: Brings Relief to Developers

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Full page cover jacket advertisements praising Prime Minister Modi, Housing Minister and Maharashtra Chief Minister for sanctioning of the Mumbai Development Control and Promotion Regulations (DCPR) 2034 by industry bodies like NAREDCO indicated a collective sigh of relief in the developer community

More than the provisions, it was the end of a long wait. The delay in implementation of regulations had slowed down many realty projects in the city. Developers complained there was lack of clarity in the absence of a proper transition policy.

Some of the key highlights of the DPCR 2034 include; opening up 3,700 hectares of land that was earlier designated as No Development Zone (NDZ) for residential real estate, linking of permissible Floor Space Index (FSI) to road width in order to check congestion in the city, Another significant ambiguity which has been done away with in DCPR 2034, is the definition of carpet area which has now been aligned to Maha RERA’s definition of carpet area. The DCPR also aims to create 8 million jobs by increasing the supply of office spaces.

The industry experts believe the provisions in the new DCPR 2034 will reduce the project cost with reduction in the premium FSI and fungible area premium.

“The government has reduced premium FSI and fungible area cost by 10% for residential development. While earlier land owner was supposed to pay 60% of the land ASR (annual schedule of rates) to government agencies, now they would need to pay 50% of the land ASR value. The revised decision of the government would bring down total project cost by at least 5% to 6%”, says Pankaj Kapoor, Managing Director, and Liases Foras.

According to international property consultants Knight Frank, the current version of the Development Plan 2034 is significantly different from the one that was passed in February 2018 by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporations (BMC).

“With the release of DCPR 2034, the last level of uncertainty has ended. The developer community can now progress with confidence. The policy provides clarity and focus for future development of Mumbai. The DCPR 2034 has provided a fillip to the commercial sector in Mumbai by way of incentivized FSI, however, the high cost of the FSI could be a challenge. On the residential front, measures such as opening up of land for promoting affordable housing and unification of carpet area definition will prove to be a boon for home-buyers’, says Shishir Baijal, Chairman & Managing Director, Knight Frank India.

“The previous situation, where more stringent provisions of the two DPs were to apply, meant new constructions had practically ground to a halt. With sanctioning of the new Development Plan, work at all the on-going projects will resume. The new development plan aims at multifaceted future development in tandem with the robust infrastructure network along the length and breadth of the city. The future development will provide impetus to the additional housing demand in the city encompassing the need of the all the housing segments across the board. It augurs well for home seekers as also for the industry”, says Niranjan Hiranandani –National President- Naredco and Co-Founder & MD- Hiranandani Group.

The new DCPR also offers several incentives for the landowners which according to the experts will pave way for the city’s development.

“Incentives granted to land owners will make them come forward to contribute their land for public purpose like new roads, reservations or road widening etc. The reduction in some of the premiums, will make commercial development more viable now, which in turn will increase employment in MMR. Thus, new DP paves way for Acche Din to Realty Sector & Mumbaikars”, says Vilas Nagalkar, Architect & member of Practising Engineers, Architects and Town Planners Associations (PEATA).

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Large scale RERA violations in Maharashtra, reveals survey by consumer body

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Consumer body Mumbai Grahak Panchayat (MGP) in a recently conducted online survey of homebuyers in Maharashtra found there were large scale RERA violations in the state due to lack of proper awareness.

The survey focused on non-registration of on-going real estate projects with MahaRERA and non-execution of agreement for sale by the builders despite accepting more than 10 percent of flat cost from homebuyers.

The survey found that out of 707 homebuyers, 374 homebuyers (53 percent) have reported that their builder has not registered their on-going real estate project with MahaRERA. Out of these 374 home-buyers, 233 ( i.e. 62 percent) have not complained to MahaRERA about nonregistration of their projects.

Out of 707 homebuyers, as many as 35 percent home-buyers did not know that their on-going projects were required to be registered by their builder with MahaRERA.

The survey also revealed that Out of 707 homebuyers, almost 41 percent did not know that for non-registration of the project, the builder can be penalized under RERA act with up to 10 percent of the project cost.

The second part of survey which focused on non- registration of the agreement revealed that out of 640 home-buyers, 302 homebuyers ( i.e. 47%) have reported that inspite of paying more than 10 percent of the flat cost, their builder has not executed Agreement for Sale.

Out of 677 homebuyers as many as 376 home-buyers (almost 56 percent) did not know that the builder cannot accept more than 10 percent of the flat cost without executing Agreement for Sale.

Out of 677 Home buyers, 410 home-buyers ( i.e. almost 61 percent) did not know that for accepting more than 10 percent of the flat cost without executing Agreement for Sale, the builder can be penalized up to 5 percent of the project cost under RERA Act.

The MGP now plans to take up with MahaRERA the issue of non-registration of on-going projects by some builders and will insist on slapping heavy penalties as provided under RERA act.  The RERA Act provides for penalty upto 10 percent of the project cost on the builders, if the on-going project, which did not have Commencement Certificate as on 1st May 2017, is not duly registered with MahaRERA.

Based on the inputs received in this Survey, MGP will also inform MahaRERA the names of the builders, who have not executed the Agreements for Sale but have accepted more than 10 percent flat cost from homebuyers.

“It has also become clear that there is an urgent need to create a widespread awareness about the homebuyers’ Rights and Builders’ obligations under RERA. Sec 33 of RERA has mandated MahaRERA to create such awareness among consumers. MGP will call upon MahaRERA to extend all possible help to MGP and other consumer bodies to create such widespread awareness,” said Shirish Deshpande, Chairman, MGP.

The online survey was conducted from 26^th September-10^th October.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Big boost for home buyers: Projects received part occupation certificate to come under MahaRERA

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

In an order that would set a precedent for future cases related to part occupation certificate, the MahaRERA (Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority) in an interim order dated September 12 has held that the project will come under its jurisdiction even though it has received part occupation certificate.

In its order, MahaRERA implied that having part occupation certificate means the project is not completed. The ruling is very significant as getting part occupation certificate for the projects is quite a trend among the developers in Maharashtra.

“This will be a welcome order for the home buyers. The projects with part occupation certificate will now be considered as ongoing projects. This means, they will now come under the purview of RERA,” said Apurva Kanvinde, senior associate, Juris Corp.

The order was passed in a complaint filed by Haresh Jethmal Asher against Bellissimo Crown Buildmart, which is a subsidiary of Lodha Developers.

The buyer had purchased a flat on the 13th floor of ‘Evoq’ building situated at New Cuff Parade along with three parking spaces through a letter of allotment on May 22, 2017 on the basis of the booking form dated April 8, 2015.

The complainant alleged that the builder had advertised in the newspapers that the possession of the flat would be given by December 2016 with all amenities. Thereafter, the buyer claims he was informed by the builder that the possession will be given by April, 2017.

The buyer said the builder did not provide a copy of occupation certificate and therefore, he could not get the loan and pay the entire consideration before the application of Goods and Services Tax (GST) in the state.

He claimed to have suffered loss and damages due to the incorrect statement made by the developer and hence, prayed for a refund of his entire amount with interest.

The developer claimed that he received part occupation certificate on June 8, 2017 from Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) for 1-40th floor of B wing and hence, it’s not registered with MahaRERA. And as the complainant booked the flat on 13th floor, the authority has no jurisdiction to entertain this complaint.

According to Section 3(2) of RERA act, the project is exempted from registration, if the developer has received completion certificated before the commencement of the act. RERA came into effect from May 1, 2017.

While hearing the case, B.D. Kapadnis, member and adjudicating officer of MahaRERA, held that part occupation certificate does not exempt project from registration.

“The part occupancy certificate impliedly demonstrates that the building/project is not completed. It is issued on the basis of part completion certificate given by the private architect that too on the indemnity of the owner/constructor. Hence, it indicates that the project is not completed as per the sanctioned building plan, layout plan and their specifications. Section 3 (2) of RERA exempts the phase/part of the project/building from its registration.”

“However, I find that the other requirements of RERA can be complied with only on completion of the entire project such as handing over the, amenities to the society of the allottees, execution of their conveyance in favour of the society etc. Many a times, the other amenities and services promised may be provided on the completion of the last phase of the project.”

“Therefore, the interest of allottees of the entire project is involved in the completion of the whole project in its entirety. It would be anomalous to hold that some part of the building is covered by RERA’s jurisdiction and other part is exempted. Hence, in my opinion, the entire project comes under the jurisdiction of RERA so long as its occupancy certificate is not issued by the competent authority. This leads me to hold that though the respondents have received the part occupancy certificate including that of 13 floor, where the complainant’s booked flat is situated, the jurisdiction of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority is not lost.” reads the interim order passed by B.D. Kapadnis.

“We intend to file an appeal against the order before the appellate authority,” said Lodha Developers spokesperson.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Maharashtra announces land conversion policy but housing societies unhappy

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

The Maharashtra cabinet on Tuesday approved the proposal of converting the class II and leasehold lands to freehold.

The government has set the rate for the conversion of these lands at 25 percent of the ready reckoner (RR) rate. The RR rates are the market rates of the properties determined by the government.

This is set to benefit at least 3,000 housing societies in the Mumbai suburbs and over 22,000 housing societies in the state, who are either on class II or leasehold lands. Some of these housing societies are in prime areas of the city.

However, this news has failed to bring any cheer to the residents of these 3,000 odd housing societies.

The representatives of the societies have said in a press note that the whole exercise of the government of converting class II and leasehold lands to freehold is bound to fail is as the rates fixed by the government are too much for them.

This conversion of land is important for these housing societies as this was set to ease the process of redevelopment. Most of these housing societies are quite old.

These buildings stand on what is called as class II property, or collector’s land — that’s land given out by the government to sections of society for housing purposes on long-term lease at concessional rates. So technically, any modification needs approval from the collector’s office.

Since 2011, the residents of such housing societies have been making representations to the government to make their land freehold.

To address this concern in 2016, the government amended Maharashtra Land Revenue Code (1966) and allowed conversion of class II and leasehold land to freehold by paying a premium to the government. A committee was set up under principal secretary revenue to decide the premium.

“This is too much a burden the societies can bear. To give an example of the burden, if the RR rate is Rs 50,000 per square metre, then the average outgo for 500 square feet and the flat would be Rs 5 lakh. If the RR rate Rs 1 lakh per square metre, then it will be Rs 10 lakh for same size flat. Such a premium is way outside what most common people can pay,” said Salil Rameshchandra, president, Federation of Grantees of Government Lands.

This is an association of housing societies who have been granted land by the government.

He further added asking them to pay a hefty premium for conversion is a grave injustice, “These lands, which were given to societies were in such a condition that no one was willing to reside as they were khajans/swamps. The complete infrastructure costs were borne by the societies.”

Through the conversion of these lands, the state government has plans of raising a substantial amount of revenue.

But with the high premium set by the government, the experts fear the scheme might not take off as planned. This means the housing societies will have to wait even longer to get their old buildings redeveloped.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Mithi: A river of plastic

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

As part of our series on India’s water crisis, let’s put the spotlight on India’s financial capital, Mumbai.

On the face of it, Mumbai has no water scarcity, with excess rainfall seeming to be its biggest challenge.

But the city’s track record of handling its water bodies have been dismal and a case in point is its most abused river, Mithi.

The river is also known as Mumbai’s storm water drain, as it carries the excess water received during the rains.

But ironically, Mithi has become the major cause of floods occurring in the Mumbai city.

When one hears the name of Mithi river, unfortunately, the deluge of 2005 is the first thing that comes to mind.

In 2005, Mithi river over-flowed, resulting in the loss of lives and property.

Since then, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has spent crores of rupees to rejuvenate Mithi river.

“The BMC is trying to do their work nicely and has provided the funds as well. In the first step, we have given Rs 923 crore, second, Rs 1,239.60 crore was given. We also completed the third step in which Rs 640 crore was given,” said Sadhana Mane, chairperson, works committee, BMC.

Although, these figures run in crores, the 17 km long river still remains one of the most abused rivers of the city.

Black water, floating garbage and strong stench emanating from the river, are the few things that we saw at the origin of the river.

Mithi river runs along some of the prime locations of Mumbai such as Powai, Santacruz and Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) before meeting the sea at Mahim Bay.

Over the years, Mithi river has fallen victim to development, where its land was reclaimed for building Mumbai Airport and BKC.

At every stretch, we can see floating garbage, encroachment by slums on its bank and construction debris lying around.

However, untreated industrial effluents are discharged into the Mithi river, which caused thick white foams to form near the industrial belt of Andheri east.

This makes the activists question, where did all the money spent on the Mithi river clean-up go?

The taxpayer’s money is spent in crores and still the citizens see the dirt, filth and garbage lying in the river.

The silt, which is cleared by contractors, is accumulated on the banks of the river and again goes back to the river.

It’s like all the money spent is going down the drain, said Godfrey Pimenta, founder, Watchdog Foundation.

But in its defence, BMC, India’s richest municipal corporation, claims the work on Mithi river is an on-going process.

Despite cleaning Mithi by BMC, the river still gets flooded as entire desilting is not possible and it’s done in three steps, that is 70-15-15 percent.

“In that way, if heavy shower comes down, there is flooding. Then whatever work we have done go to the dogs,” Mane added.

But the experts claim the BMC is taking a myopic view and it needs to adopt a holistic approach.

“We have to look at social, economic and environment quotient of Mithi’s problem. Having identified all the problems, we will be able to come out with a solution which is holistic. That solution will be comprehensive and sustainable,” said Gautam Kirtane, urban issues expert.

There is absolutely no doubt that Mithi river plays a vital role in keeping Mumbai city safe from floods during the monsoon and also ensure the city’s ground water levels do not dip.

And now, it’s high time that the government, BMC and Mumbai’s residents get serious about the rejuvenation of this neglected and polluted river before it’s too late.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

MahaRERA makes it easier for homebuyers to file complaints, report unregistered projects

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

The Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA), which is considered as a role model when it comes to implementation of the act, has now revised its standard operating procedure.

In a circular issued by MahaRERA, the authority has revised its standard operation procedure for complaints being filed with the authority and for source information of the projects, which ought to have been registered but have not registered.

This has been done after inputs received from various stakeholders and experience of MahaRERA over past one year.

“We have decided to further simplify the complaints procedure and digitise the source information of projects procedure,” said Vasant Prabhu, Secretary, MahaRERA.

So what are the new changes? Now the complaints of MahaRERA will get to upload all the documents online, while filing the complaint on MahaRERA portal.

Earlier, the complainants had to submit the hard copies separately to the authority.

Interestingly, this will reduce a lot of time.

Now, the 60 days period in which the complaints have to be resolved, will start as soon as the complainant receives his/her complaint number.

Previously, the time period used to start only after the submission of hard copies to the authority.

Also, if the respondent is a promoter, a separate notice of the complaint filed won’t be sent to him/her.

Now, the details of the complaints will be available on his project ID dashboard.

For the source information on projects not registered, earlier MahaRERA had only one email ID through, which people could inform them about unregistered projects.

Also, there wasn’t any way to follow up on the complaint.

In order to address these issues, MahaRERA has now streamlined the procedure by creating an online application form on its website.

The informant has to submit the details of unregistered projects online. This application will be free of cost.

The mobile number of the informant will be verified through a One Time Password (OTP).

“The informant can also view the status of their application on real time basis by using the mobile number or information reference number,” Prabhu added.

The revised procedure for complaints will be applicable from August 1 and procedure for source information on projects is implemented with immediate effect.

So far, more than 17,000 projects and 15,000 real estate brokers have registered under MahaRERA.

It has received some 3,000 complaints out which nearly 2,000 have been resolved.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow