House in Jayanagar built without Bescom power

House in Jayanagar built without Bescom powerBy Niranjan Kaggere, Bangalore Mirror Bureau | Sep 27, 2016, 04.00 AM IST

The 133 panels collectively generate about 80 units of power during the day

Built at a cost of Rs 36 lakh, solar unit uses thin panels; and it meets all power requirements during construction

For those civil engineers and architects who are sceptical about using solar power in construction, a city-based industrialist has demonstrated that one could complete the construction of a house without even obtaining a temporary connection from the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (Bescom).

Setting a new example in harnessing solar energy, Dinesh Pagaria has accomplished the construction work of his house in Jayanagar 8th Block by using only solar power. From the foundation to completion of his new house, Dinesh has not availed electricity from Bescom and instead relied on the abundant solar power available at the site to complete the construction work.

While it is common for people to install solar units on rooftops after completion of construction, Dinesh set up the unit on his empty site a year ago and began with the foundation and the subsequent civil work. As the work progressed, he not only shifted the unit on top but even upgraded it to a higher capacity, thereby saving Rs 7 to 8 lakh alone on temporary power connection with Bescom during the construction on his 60x80 plot.

Besides, Dinesh has used solar panels made of thin films that can generate full power even during dim light or intense cloudy conditions. Thus, the thin film solar panels that are hitherto used in commercial solar power generation, have made inroads into domestic rooftop solar panels.

Strong belief in solar power

A strong supporter of eco-friendly green energy, Dinesh wanted to try out with solar power during the construction of his house. Despite the initial inhibitions, Dinesh's idea was backed by his architect, Ganesh of Studio69, and engineers off JJJSolar firm that executed the ambitious project. To begin with, during the foundation work, the engineers commissioned a small 4 Kw plant at the construction site by installing panels on top of the workers' shed. As the work progressed, the engineers not only increased the capacity of the unit but also gave it a proper shape that even in future Dinesh need not worry about availing any power connection from Bescom.

Come rain, shine, there is enough power

Cloudy days had turned out to be big worry for Dinesh as the usual solar plants fail to generate the desired power. To overcome this challenge, the engineers imported thin film solar panels based on CIS cells from Japan.

"While a conventional PV solar panel costs anywhere between Rs 5,000 and Rs 6,000, the thin film solar panels costs you Rs 7,000. Unlike the regular panels, these are lighter and a person can easily walk on them. While PV panels require sunrays to fall on them, these thin film panels start generating power with the break of dawn just by using small luminous flux of sunlight. Even if there is complete shade on the panels, only that part will stop generating power while the other panels keep generating power by making use of sunlight even in overcast conditions. This technology is widely used in commercial solar farms for optimum generation and it is only for the first time that it has been used in domestic rooftop technology," CP Srinivasa, electrical engineer with JJJSolar explained.

From 4 Kw to 20 Kw powerhouse

What was initially a 4 Kw solar unit has now gone on to become 20 Kw powerhouse on top of the house, which will be ready for occupation in a month's time. "A construction site witnesses activities like bore-well, cutting, welding, polishing and heating that require high voltage power. As a result, everybody opts for temporary power connection from Bescom that costs anywhere between Rs 5 to 8 lakh depending on the load. But here, all such works have been carried out by using solar power.

No worker had any complaints about the quality of power being supplied at any part of the day. As the work at construction site starts around 10 am, till then the batteries get charged to the maximum level. As the work started, workers consumed whatever energy that was produced directly. During the break hours again the generated energy got stored in the batteries to be used during nights at the workers' quarters," Srinivasa said.

Today, the engineers have installed a total of 133 panels on top of the roof with each generating about 150 watts. The entire 20 Kw solar unit has cost approximately Rs 36 lakh including the panels, fabricated steel structure, inverters, batteries and electrical accessories, according to engineers.




Dinesh Pagaria has set an example to follow

"The 20 Kw system has three inverters. While two of them have a capacity of 8 Kw each, another processes about 4 Kw. These inverters are based on a Swizz technology and are hybrid in nature. It can sync with the grid, wind, DG or solar power automatically, besides managing critical and noncritical loads on a 24/7 basis. The inverters are connected to two battery sets with a capacity of 1,000 ah each. These are absolutely maintenance-free batteries and have a lifespan of 10-15 years depending on the usage. The system is equipped with a wireless technology and linked to a Wi-Fi modem. The owner can control the generation or consumption by sitting in any part of the world," explained Shyam Sundar NS, electrical engineer and head of operations of Studer Innotec India.

The 133 panels collectively generate about 80 units of power during the day. "Our calculation of consumption considering the centralised air-conditioner, refrigerator, washing machine, bore-well (5 Hp motor) and other appliances at peak consumption would be around 18 to 20 units per day as against the total generation of 80 units per day. In the future too, the house will not require any power supply from the Bescom. While the part of investment to the tune of Rs 5 to 8 lakh has already been recovered, in the days to come, with full utilisation of power, the entire investment can be redeemed with power savings," Sreenivasa added.
http://www.bangaloremirror.com/bangalore/cover-story/House-in-Jayanagar-built-without-Bescom-power/articleshow/54532750.cms

LIFE AFTER DEBT-BBMP's demolition drive

LIFE AFTER DEBTBy Preethi Ravi, Bangalore Mirror Bureau | Aug 12, 2016, 04.00 AM IST http://www.bangaloremirror.com/bangalore/cover-story/Life-after-debt/articleshow/53658704.cms

KR Muniraju, who lost his 2-BHK house and now has to worry about repaying the Rs 7-lakh home loan he took to build it

Residents who have lost their homes to the BBMP's demolition drive now have to worry about how to repay home loans — without a home

As bulldozers roared through Doddabommasandra on Thursday -- the sixth day of demolitions -- Muniraju had only two thoughts racing through his head: the home that he lost and the loan that he will have to repay.

KR Muniraju is just one of the several people who have lost their homes to the demolitions being carried out by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) in the wake of last month's deluge. It's been a double whammy for most of them -- despite losing their homes, they will have to continue paying their equated monthly instalments (EMIs) for the loans they took to build the house. While many residents built their homes with their savings, a handful took loans from banks given that the BBMP had issued khatas and other public utility companies had provided connections. For all practical purposes, their homes were as legal as they come and banks had no qualms about extending the loans to them.

On Thursday, as restoration work of the storm water drain (SWD) continued in Doddabommasandra, 45-year-old bank employee Muniraju stood amongst the rubble, wistful.

Muniraju lives with a family of five in a two BHK, and is now worried about his home loans; he has a loan of Rs 7 lakh for his house. He has lost his life's earnings in just two days after his house came under the demolition drive. "I am yet to take a decision on the repayment of my loans. I had a 600 sq ft property and I lost around 300 sq ft. Nearly half the property is gone and I am worried," he told Bangalore Mirror.

He alleged that the civic agency had encroached on his property. "BBMP has made me homeless. I have sent my family members to my relative's house, and I will have to decide on my next move," he added.

Munivanthamma, 66, lost almost all her earnings. A two-storey building, which included six houses and two shops, was reduced to just three houses. "My husband worked in Bharat Electronics Limited, and after his death we got Rs 7 lakh from his pension. I invested another Rs 10 lakh to build the house," she said.

The BBMP claims it has razed more than 80 properties in the last two days and the demolitions will continue in the coming days too.

Bengaluru demolition drive: FIR lodged in illegal encroachment case

A FIR was lodged on Thursday against 20 government officials and 6 builders by the Bangalore Metro Politan Task Force (BMPTF) after recommendations from the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) commissioner Manjunath Prasad.

http://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/bengaluru-demolition-drive-fir-lodged-in-illegal-encroachment-case/344935/

The BBMP has brought down 822 buildings that have been built illegally on encroached lands. (PTI)

A FIR was lodged on Thursday against 20 government officials and 6 builders by the Bangalore Metro Politan Task Force (BMPTF) after recommendations from the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) commissioner Manjunath Prasad. Prasad was a part of the meeting of the Joint Committee on Tank encroachment. The meeting was headed by the Speaker K B Koliwad. Earlier in January 2016, a report was submitted by the Koliwad committee, which stated that 835 lakes were safe in the city of Bengaluru whereas at least 645 lakes have been affected by illegal construction.

During the Joint Committee meeting, Prasad said that 75 lakes were under the BBMP and Google maps had helped them identify lakes located within 30-75 metre buffer zones. It has been reported that 1,754 buildings have been constructed between 30-35 metre buffer zones and 4,200 buildings had been constructed within the 30-75 metre buffer zones. These set of buildings include 50 high rise buildings within 15 metres of the lakes.

The rampant encroachment of lakes in the city has led to the death of 112 of the 835 lakes in the Bangalore Urban area. Only 166 of the 1,545 lakes in the Bengaluru Urban and Bengaluru Rural districts have been declared free of encroachments. The Legislative Assembly released documents in January 2016, revealing these statistics. Earlier yesterday, the BBMP had recommended names of 20 government officials who have allowed illegal encroachments in the city. 6 of these officials had retired but the rest have been suspended effective immediately.

Why Bangalore is using Raj-era maps to identify and raze encroachments on its storm-water drains

The civic body has demolished close to 1,000 buildings constructed on canals to prevent flooding – but many claim their structures do not run over a drain.

In late July, residents of southeast Bangalore – the city's IT hub – woke up to knee-high water in their homes. Torrential rains had flooded parts of the city, stirring officials of Bangalore’s municipal corporation into action.

Close to 600 houses were submerged after the city received its heaviest rainfall in five decades.

In response, the civic authorities revived their drive to demolish buildings that have come on up on the city’s storm-water drains, something that they have been undertaking piecemeal over the last three or four years. In all, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanara Palike has identified 1,923 encroachments, of which they have cleared close to 1,000, civic officials said. Of this, close to 150 structures have been razed this month alone.

But the drive, which has displaced hundreds of residents, has met with protests, legal challenges and allegations that the civic body is sparing big developers while going after smaller fish. There is panic spreading among residents who are now wondering whether their building will be next. Many residents have claimed that they were not aware that their homes were built over storm water drains, while others have said there are no such drains in their areas.

Why the frenzy?

Bengalore reportedly has 857 km of storm-water drains, of which 380 km have been encroached upon.

Curiously enough, the municipal corporation has been using village maps that are more than a century old to locate these rajakaluve – as storm water drains are locally called – and identify the structures that have been built over them, allegedly as encroachments.

Some of these maps were drawn in the 1890s, when a lot of what is part of Bangalore city today was village land. Over the years, there has been rampant real estate development in these sections and the landscape has changed to such an extent that it is difficult to locate a point on these village maps on the ground.

Somewhat paradoxically, the municipal authorities has to refer to century-old village maps to reform Bangalore’s sprawling urban landscape today because these maps seem to be the only legally valid land records for these areas.

Whose land is it anyway?

These village records were used by the British for revenue and tax collection in the pre-Independence era. "The only basis of demolition is the mother document, which are the village maps,” said urbanist V Ravichandar. "There are no proper urban documents where storm water drains are notified. The underlying village maps still define the city. Therefore Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike was forced to use village maps. Unfortunately, the citizens here are the victims."

During the ongoing demolition drive, however, many residents complained that they were not aware that their home had come up on land occupied by storm water drains – or that there is no rajakaluve there.

Most home owners also cite deeds and documents to show that they had purchased the house from developers and that this wasn’t an illegal encroachment.

Before staring construction on storm water drains, builders need the approval of the urban planning authority, the Bangalore Development Authority.

Experts, however, said that developers start construction even without this approval. By merely obtaining a sale deed called the khata, huge layouts and complexes have been constructed and sold to unsuspecting citizens. However, Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike issues a khata only for the building plan, not for the plot or area where the building is constructed. For this, they only take into account whether the developer has followed guidelines pertaining to parking and other matters.

“People are confusing khata with certificate of everything being kosher,” Ravichandar told Mint. "But the khata was merely a sale deed witnessing a transaction. The plot owners are taking the khata as a security blanket.” M Shivaprasad, technical assistant to the chief engineer of Storm Water Drains Department of the municipal corporation said that since encroachments have not been marked in several of these old maps, the authorities will be conducting a fresh survey in a few areas using more recent maps sketched by the Land Records department in 2012-'13 to identify encroachments. This exercise will take at least a week.

HIGH-RISES WILL NEED MANDATORY GREEN CLEARANCE

HIGH-RISES WILL NEED MANDATORY GREEN CLEARANCE
By Atul Chaturvedi, Bangalore Mirror Bureau | Jul 20, 2016, 04.00 AM IST



Will apply to buildings covering 20,000 sq m

While the real estate sector booming in the city, various steps are being taken by authorities to keep a tighter rein on illegal construction work that is rampant throughout Bengaluru.

The newest mandate requires clearance from the State-level Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) for builders undertaking construction of over 2,15,278.21 sq ft (20,000 sq m). 

The BBMP, alone, cannot sanction any plans covering above 20,000 sq m or townships and area-development projects covering areas of more than 50 hectares.

It may be recalled that, earlier, after members of Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Associations of India (CREDAI) had complained about the delay in the process of plan sanctions, the then Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) commissioner, on February 22, 2013, had approved sanctioning of plans even before NOCs are issued by the other agencies. Thus, plans were approved by BBMP even before SEIAA sanctions. 

In many cases, despite non-clearance from the SEIAA, builders took up the construction work citing BBMP approval. Recently, due to severe shortage of available land, the government had also come up with the proposal of issuing premium FAR (floor area ratio) along the peripheral ring road.

The BBMP has now acted upon the recommendations after two reminders from the SEIAA - on June 28, 2014 and May 31, 2016 - which directed the commissioner to withhold approvals for any kind of high-rise construction in BBMP limits till the SEIAA clearance is given. Apart from the SEIAA, six other NOCs from other agencies are also mandatory.

SEIAA has issued directions under section 5 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. Whoever fails to comply with or contravenes any of its directions, will be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years or with fine which may extend to Rs 1 lakh or both.

An official attached to the town planning department said that zonal engineers approve ground-plus-three floors plans even in cases where road width is only eight metres or less. The law requires the road width to be at least nine meters in case of high-rises. In most cases, when complaints are made against such builders, engineers cancel the sanctioned plan but this is challenged in court. More often than not, cancellation of the plan is stayed. By the time court reissues orders, the construction work is usually completed.

THESE AGENCIES TO OKAY BUILDINGS

* Fire department
* Airports Authority of India
* Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board
* Karnataka State Pollution Control Board
* Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited
* Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited
* State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA)

http://www.bangaloremirror.com/bangalore/civic/High-rises-will-need-mandatory-green-clearance/articleshow/53289072.cms

RERA for Karnataka-New group to help home buyers in Bengaluru

New group to help home buyers in Bengaluru

Here's a group that will help home buyers get right guidance on the legalities of home buying and inform them of their rights and duties of builders.

M S Shankar , 22 Jun 2016

RERA for Karnataka is an open, public group, devoted to the welfare of home-owners of apartments, villas or plots.

We seek to improve the legal framework and its implementation, by working for quick and proper implementation of RERA and reforms in existing laws. We are also seeking reforms in the procedures and policies of agencies, such as KSPCB, BWSSB, BESCOM, BBMP, BDA etc to make the rules fair and more practical to comply with.

Objectives

1. To work for speedy and effective implementation of the RERA in the state of Karnataka.
2. To drive reforms in various acts related to apartment ownership in Karnataka and to seek resolution of any conflicts/confusion resulting from RERA coming into effect.
3. To work with Government for effective implementation of various acts and rules affecting home buyers
4. To educate home buyers on their rights and responsibilities, to ensure better legal compliance
5. To work with developer groups such as CREDAI to develop best practices that protect the interests of both developers as well as home buyers.
6. To serve as a platform to communicate and seek reforms in current rules and policies of agencies such as BBMP, BDA, BESCOM, BWSSB, KSPCB, BMRDA, etc. that affect Home buyers.

Achievements so far

We have conducted extensive survey of apartments across Bengaluru to understand the common issues faced by the Home-owners and about 170 specific issues have been compiled.

Our Google Group provides online help for home buyers queries and their problems, as follows:

• Publishing articles in FAQ format to address these issues, with citation from the relevant acts. Additional questions from Home Buyers are answered. (KAOA, KOFA, Registration Act, Indian Contracts Act, KSRA, etc.)
• Publishing articles on how various laws and agencies are supposed to protect the Home Buyers  (This enables them to protect themselves)
• Publishing articles about legal gaps that lead to miseries for the home buyers, and suggested reforms in specific acts.
• Conducting frequent seminars for Home Buyers to enhance their knowledge and awareness on their Rights, RERA Bill, Occupancy Certificate, Khata, etc.,

Presently, the Home buyers suffer from many shocking range of problems due to lacunae in the available enactments along with the issues of delay in possession, No Occupancy Certificate, No committed amenities, Non formation of legally valid association etc.

The following list is just a small sample, which gives a rough idea of the scale and impact of these issues:

• 95% of the developers never submit the property to KAOA, and yet the sale deed "sells" and apartment and UDS. But without a DoD, such Sale Deed is null and void; and the promised property is NOT transferred to the buyer!
• First and foremost to stop registration of Owners association under Society’s Act 1960, as this KSRA does not applicable to the management of joined property (Apartment) and more vulnerable is any 7 adults’ members can form an association under this KSRA. Further under KSRA, the membership is voluntary and thus you cannot force anyone to become Members.
• Agencies like KSPCB, BWSSB, BBMP and BESCOM have drafted lopsided policies that treat Home Buyers /apartments unfairly. As a result, they suffer from the following issues:
  • Apartments are burdened with much higher fees/charges (as compared to independent houses / spacious bungalows!) Despite that, they still suffer from severe water shortages, overflowing sewage and piled up garbage. Worse, thanks to unfair policies, there is no solution for their woes.
  • Due to unfair policies of agencies such as KSPCB, BWSSB, BBMP and BESCOM, the apartment associations find themselves having to comply with several rules specifically written for these communities. The cost of compliance and legal consequences for non-compliance puts a large financial burden as well as compliance risk (potential for office bearers being sent to jail) on apartment residents and their management committees. The KSPCB hold the MCs responsible for their own dereliction of duty, and slap notices (sometimes extra-legal).Thus the hapless MC members are under constant threat of imprisonment.
• In the BMRDA jurisdictional areas, the situation is worse, as there is no consistent regulation. For some strange reason, neither the BDA regulations nor the Bangalore Building Bye-laws are applied to this area.

We have compiled these issues meticulously after extensive researches and have concrete and constructive suggestions for resolution.

We need support from home buyers, apartment owners association to take this forward, and bring a mass resolution of these problems and for this we are intended to form a Registered Organisation very shortly, with following objectives :

1. To facilitate mass-resolution of common issues of apartment / layout / plot owners with the developers and various government authorities.
2. To drive reforms in various acts and government policies related to apartments / layouts / plotted communities.
3. To drive collective protective measures according to Real Estate Regulatory Authority framework, for the members/ associations of Home Buyers.
4. To serve as a common platform for voicing the apartment ? Layout / Plot owners' needs and wants in Karnataka–Bangalore.
5. To spread Legal awareness among members/ Home Buyers associations, to promote compliance on Real Estate related acts and  statutory.
6. To promote proactively collaborative practices with Government agencies and developers.
7. To release press statement , media statement about the member associations experience with the developers / government agencies.
8. To promote healthy community atmosphere among the members.

We wish all home buyers and apartment owners associations to subscribe themselves for the membership and join our movement.

M S Shankar

22 Jun 2016

URL for this article 
http://bangalore.citizenmatters.in/articles/group-to-help-home-buyers-in-bengaluru

Govt to Make Builders Pay 11% Interest For Delayed Projects!

Last updated: June 29, 2016 at 18:25 pm
Home Buyers Rejoice! Govt to Make Builders Pay 11% Interest For Delayed Projects!
Vaishnavi Kanekal



Finally! The agony of homebuyers has been heard by the government. Going forward, for any delay in handing over possession of the property to the buyer, the real estate company will have to pay 11.2 per cent interest on the principle amount paid by the buyer.

The draft rules have also discussed various issues on the real estate delayed projects but the highlight of the draft would have to be the payment of 11.2% interest.

Almost as high as 90% of the real estate projects in India move at a snail’s pace making the waiting period for homebuyer tormenting. Most real estate companies offer a maximum of 6 month delay on paper via the agreement but almost 90% of them still don’t get completed even after a year’s delay.

95% of the purchase of homes are funded by home loans and as expected, the bank interest rates need to be paid, whether or not you have moved into your new adobe. This leaves the home buyer in a soup wherein he is sandwiched between the famous real estate delay and the bank interest rates.

Also another thing to note is the helplessness of the home buyers who pay lakhs of booking amount for a project that take years to start, but of course the home buyer is kept in the dark. Also if the home buyer insists on the withdrawal of his money, it is paid after deducting some amount for no fault of the homebuyer and if the aggrieved asks for justice, the big hefty builders simply ask them to fight it out in the court ( which is generally not possible for a common man).

The newly drafted rules are highly beneficial to the home buyers. A large percentage of real estate projects take off really late and the completion is unpredictable. So the government, as per the draft rules, without the completion certificate will have to register under Real Estate Regulatory Authority which will be set up in all states and Union Territories within 3 months of the notification of the draft rules.

The real estate companies will have to disclose the expected/estimated tenure of the project, the number of flats proposed, the intended facilities, the approval certificates from other ancillary government departments, the licenses etc.

The draft rules which after being notified will accompany the Real Estate (Development and Regulation) Act, 2016. The interest rate is to be at 2% above the Prime lending rate of State Bank Of India.

The rules state that any deviations from the agreements like any postponement of the project, alterations to the prior approved apartment designs like change in layout, cancellation of some promised structures or addition of some unapproved structures will require 70% of the allottee’s consent. If the consent doesn’t come through, then the registration might be cancelled.

In the current scenario, real estate is the subject matter of the state legislatures and hence the state houses must frame rules to bring changes in the existing real estate law. President of the Confederation of Real Estate Developer’s Associations of India, Getamber Anand said, “Unfinished projects, which were launched before 2012, can be termed as defaulters and under the draft rules, if buyers demand their money back, developers will have to return at over 11 per cent rate of interest.”

All that we can really hope is to see the new regime come to life soon.http://trak.in/tags/business/2016/06/29/home-buyers-rejoice-builders-pay-11-interest-delayed-projects/

Real Estate Bill: Draft rules for UTs put out for public comment

Our Bureau

New Delhi, June 24:  

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation has put out in the public domain draft rules of few sections of the Real Estate (Development and Regulation) Act, 2016 in five Union Territories, seeking public comment, an official statement said.

The Ministry, which has put up the rules on its website, is seeking suggestions and objections from the public within two weeks.

It has come out with the ‘Union Territories of Chandigarh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Lakshadweep’ Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Rules, 2016.

“The rules provide for payments to be made for registration of projects and real estate agents with the Regulatory Authority, documents and information to be furnished by developers, procedures to be followed for registration, extension and renewal of registration, procedures for filing and hearing of complaints and appeals, appointment and service conditions of the Chairpersons and Members of Real Estate Regulatory Authorities and Appellate Tribunals and their powers etc,” the statement added.

As Union Minister has assured Parliament during a debate on the Bill, promoters cannot discriminate against anyone in the allotment of any apartment, plot or building on any grounds.

Project status updates

The promoter will be required to upload updates on the webpage of the project within seven days from the expiry of each quarter, regarding number and types of apartments or plots booked, garages booked, the status of construction of each floor, with photographs, status of approvals, etc.

“The fee proposed for registration of projects with the Regulatory Authority is ₹10 per sq m if the plot area is below 1,000 sq m and ₹20 if the area for development is more than that for residential projects and ₹50 and ₹100 per sq m for commercial projects,” it said.

Moreover, the promoters of all ongoing projects that have not received completion certificates shall apply for registration of projects within three months.

Penalties for promoters

The rules also provide for payment of 10 per cent of the estimated cost of the project for compounding of imprisonment of promoter for non-registration of the project or violation of the order of the Real Estate Appellate Tribunal.

Imprisonment of real estate agent and buyer for violating Tribunal’s Order can be compounded upon payment of 10 per cent of the estimated cost of the plot, apartment or building. However, the reasons for imprisonment shall be complied with in one month.

In case of project delay, the promoter and buyer will be liable to pay the State Bank of India Prime Lending Rate plus 2 per cent.
(This article was published on June 24, 2016)Printable version | Jul 19, 2016 2:49:51 PM | http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/real-estate/real-estate-bill-draft-rules-for-5-uts-out-for-public-comment/article8769449.ece © The Hindu Business Line

Parag  

My key suggestions are:
1. Collection of not just PAN but also copies of Aadhar, Passport and address proof and latest CIBIL report of promoters. Get updates within 15 days whenever there is a change. And no-dues certificates from tax authorities.

2. Declaration about civil/criminal cases, defaults, disputes, notices, Govt investigations/inquiries.

3. Minimum fee to avoid jail term must be able to recover all the direct/indirect losses and costs of all affected parties. Else, the developers might default on 100%, pay a 10% penalty and pocket remaining 90% money. Must be jailed on repeat offense.

Er. V.K.Agarwal,  

What about lease hold land versus PSBs rant of loans against such land to developers-builders-promoters without the consent of flat allottees. This may be seen in view of law u/s 6; 105 & 108 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 read with sec. 56 & 60 of the Indian Easement Act, 1882 and CAG Performance Audit Report No.21 of 2014.

Home buyers seek Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act draft rules review

By 

, ET Bureau|

Read more at:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/53015238.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Home buyers seek Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act draft rules review

By , ET Bureau | Jul 02, 2016, 01.54 AM IST

NEW DELHI: A group of home buyers has claimed that the draft rules for the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act circulated by the government recently ignores the interest of buyers in ongoing housing projects and should be reconsidered.

The group, under the banner 'Fight for RERA,' pointed out that the draft rules don't specify which plan builders of existing projects need to submit when they register with the regulator ­

The government put up draft rules for public comments on June 24 and deadline for public feedback is July 8. the original, sanctioned plan or the latest version, which may have been revised
several times.

"Promoter may file the last sanctioned plan, layout plan and specifications with the regulator, which may be completely different from what was promised to consumers at the time of booking, and thus escape from being penalised as the requirements under this section have been complied with," said Abhay Upadhyay, national convener of 'Fight for RERA.'

He said promoters should submit the original plans and specifications, along with all the subsequently changed plans not only to maintain transparency but to give a clear picture to the regulator with regard to compliance with Section 14, which says a proposed project will be developed and completed by the promoter in accordance with sanctioned plans, layout plans and specifications as approved by the competent authorities. "In the absence of specific rules on this, penalty under section 60 and compensation under Section 71 for violation of section 14 (1) cannot be enforced," he said.

Upadhyay said there is no clarity about the schedule of completion for ongoing projects, many of which have been delayed.

"Promoters need to provide schedule of completion which was given at the time of booking, subsequent dates when project got delayed along with time period within which he undertakes to complete the project in future. In absence of this specific rules, again penalty under section 60 cannot be imposed," he pointed out.

Since the draft rules were made public last month, members of 'Fight for RERA' have been running a campaign on Twitter trying to seek an appointment with urban development minister M Venkaiah Naidu to discuss these aspects of the rules that they say need reconsideration.

Sahil Sethi, senior associate at law firm Saikrishna & Associates, explained that even in the absence of RERA, aggrieved buyers in ongoing projects can get recourse over plan changes through existing state legislations. The government put up draft rules for public comments on June 24 and deadline for public feedback is July 8.

Sethi said the regulatory act draft rules are generally silent on existing projects. "But hopefully once notified, the rules should provide clarity on how penalty under different sections of the act will be invoked in the case of ongoing projects," he said.

The draft rules, said Upadhyay, don't say how 70% of the proceeds from a project will be deposited by the developer in a separate account to meet land and construction costs in the case of projects currently under way.

It also does not provide clarity on whether home buyers are entitled to compensation for changes in the sanctioned plan, layout plan and specifications that were made by the builder to a project before it was registered with the regulator. As per Section 14 (2) (ii), such changes need the written consent of at least two­thirds of the home buyers in the project.

Bangalore’s Sarjapur Road is still a firm realty favourite

Bangalore’s Sarjapur Road is still a firm realty favourite! Here’s why

The past few years have seen Sarjapur Road micro market, in south west Bangalore, emerge as a hot spot for middle income group housing. 

The going rate for apartments in this locality between July and September 2015 stood at INR 6400 psqft which was a fall of 10% in prices when compared to the previous quarter according to data from IndiaProperty.com. 

Notwithstanding the minor ups and downs in property price trends, Sarjapur Road continues to be a good bet especially for those who are employed in any one of the Information Technology (IT) hubs on Outer Ring Road (ORR), Whitefield and Electronics City. Two IT majors also have their campuses on this road, which makes it more sought after.

Another reason for the popularity of Sarjapur Road among mid level IT professionals is that other localities that techies flock together such as Whitefield, ORR, and E City have become saturated.

The availability of larger parcels of land on Sarjapur Road has led to the development of commercial property in this locality. Developers of commercial property have come to Sarjapur Road as larger spaces are not available in Whitefield or ORR. 

The demand for Grade A office space is ongoing. This in turn has paved way for residential development for the middle income group. The demand is for houses in the below INR 50 lakh band and this mostly comes from end users. The locality also has a well established social infrastructure of hospitals and schools which adds to its popularity.

The causes for concern are traffic congestions at all the major junctions, the bad condition of internal roads and the lack of water supply to some locations. Though flyovers and underpasses have come up, efficient traffic management is the need of the hour.

The current situation on Sarjapur Road is that supply of apartments has far exceeded the demand. Though there is demand from end users, there are a lot more apartments to be sold off. This has resulted in a slowing down of pre launches and launches of housing projects. More than 30% of the housing which is being developed in Bangalore is now in Sarjapur Road and the areas around such as Haralur Road and Gunjur.

Despite the strong demand, there are over 1000 unsold housing units in Sarjapur Road. According to recent research, Bangalore has the second highest number of unsold apartments among other Indian metros. The numbers of housing units which are unsold are 84,000 units as on the quarter ended June 2015. Bangalore has overtaken both Mumbai for unsold inventory and is second only to Delhi’s National Capital Region (NCR).

Developers say that though there are a number of enquires, these are not translated into actual purchases. The reasons for this are varied starting with the slowing economy, rising food costs and going on to a lack of consumer confidence; this has led to people putting off their investments to a later date, when things ease off a bit.

Like other parts of the country, in Bangalore too, apartments within the price band of INR 35 lakh to INR 80 lakh get off the shelf quite fast as there is a demand for this price band, but houses which are priced above INR 1 crore find few takers. However, most of the apartments which have been launched in Bangalore are priced between INR 75 lakh and INR 1 crore. While sales are slower on Tumkur Road, Mysore Road and the west of Bangalore; Sarjapur Road, Kankapura Road, Bellary Road and Varthur in Whitefield, which have easy access to IT clusters, are in demand.

Nina Varghese for IndiaProperty.com

Unitech case jolts builders, gives hope to home buyers

Unitech case jolts builders, gives hope to home buyers

By Prabhakar Sinha , TNN|13 Jan, 2016, 10.40AM IST

The sharp slowdown in the realty sector has piled misery on home buyers across the country and within NCR. By some estimates, handover of 3 lakh houses are delayed by up to eight years.

NEW DELHI: The Unitech case has jolted real estate developers on the need to speed up delivery of office and residential property after the company's directors spent a night in jail on the orders of a court before they obtained bail.

The sharp slowdown in the realty sector has piled misery on home buyers across the country and within NCR.

By some estimates, handover of 3 lakh houses are delayed by up to eight years.

Lack of clear guidelines has left home buyers at the mercy of the fine print of the buyer-seller agreement.

Apro-consumer realty bill which seeks to set up a regulator and bring transparency in the unregulated segment is pending in Rajya Sabha. Meanwhile, the list of consumer woes has grown.

"We booked the apartment in 2009 and were supposed to get it by 2011. It has been a long struggle. We are fighting a legal battle at the National Consumer Redressal Court, but it is just moving from date to date," said Sharmishta Mallick, who booked an apartment in Gurgaon.

President of Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Association of India (CREDAI) Getamber Anand, who is also CMD of ATS, said the episode is a clear message that the law will catch up and urged developers to focus on execution, delivery and keep their promise made to the buyers.

A senior developer from Mumbai said gone are the days when developers used to promises something at the time of selling and deliver something else. "Now, the buyers are discerning and the courts are active. This episode will make one think twice before messing around with a customer," said the developer, who did not wish to be quoted.

CREDAI NCR president Manoj Gaur said he would not read much in the latest case, but added that fly-by-night operators will have to wind up operations.

He said Unitech is a serious player in the segment but found itself in such a mess due to reasons beyond its control.

A Bengaluru-based builder said many developers are in a tough spot because of diversion of sale proceeds from one project to another or for acquisition of fresh land. At a time when the sector is facing slowdown, such players get trapped and face the risk of default in repayment of loans and delay the completion of projects.

Gated communities not allowed across public roads and parks

PRIVATE LAYOUTS CANNOT HIDE BEHIND WALLS, SAYS BBMP
By Bharat A Patel, Bangalore Mirror Bureau | Jan 4, 2016, 04.00 AM IST


The residents welfare association filed a writ petition in HC stating that BBMP’s proposed plan was illegal

The BBMP's stand comes in the backdrop of the MS Ramaiah City Layout, JP Nagar, controversy where the layout's residents have locked horns with residents from neighbouring areas over throughfare

In a major setback to residential layouts proclaiming themselves 'gated communities', blocking roads and cutting off access to the general public, the BBMP has categorically stated that roads and parks inside such layouts are "public properties" and, hence, cannot be access-controlled.

Another significant directive from the BBMP is that private layouts cannot barricade themselves within compound walls if roads are meant to be used by the public or are criss-crossing through them. 

The BBMP's stand comes in the backdrop of the MS Ramaiah City Layout controversy in JP Nagar 8th Phase (ward number 195) — where the layout's Residents Welfare Association has locked horns with residents from neighbouring areas over access to roads and a park inside the layout.

A BDA-approved layout, M S Ramaiah City was marketed as a gated community and the developers constructed a compound wall around it and also installed gates on the road that connects J P Nagar 8th Phase with Bannerghatta Road. The layout came under the purview of BBMP in 2007.

However, a controversy erupted when K N Sharath Babu, a resident of nearby Adityanagar, took objection to the blockading of the road and the alleged construction of a structure on a public pathway. 

He complained to BBMP officials. When there was no action taken, he lodged a complaint with the Lokayukta stating that the general public was not being allowed inside the layout despite the BBMP maintaining the road and park. 

Subsequently, the BBMP technical wing did a spot inspection and found that a compound wall was constructed around the layout and it was obstructing free movement of public from neighbouring layouts.

The BBMP chief engineer's report in September 2014 stated: "Three roads from the neighbouring layout have terminated at the compound wall of MS Ramaiah City Layout. 

The BDA has informed them that the roads formed in BDA approved layouts are a public place and construction of any wall across such road and the making a gated community is not allowed. 

Such obstructions will be considered as unauthorised and further action will be taken according to rules." 

The report also named four BBMP engineers: N A Khan, Bhaskar, Ramachandra and Yogendra — for not having cracked down against such construction.

In the meantime, the M S Ramaiah City Residents Welfare Association filed a writ petition in the Karnataka High Court stating that BBMP's proposed plan to demolish the compound wall was illegal. 

Justice Ravi Malimath disposed of the petition on October 29, 2015 with a direction to BBMP to act in accordance with the law. 

The BBMP legal cell interpreted the court order as a green signal to initiate removal of obstructions. The Bangalore Metropolitan Task Force (BMTF), on November 18, 2015, sent a communication to the BBMP joint commissioner (Bommanahalli zone) to follow the court directive of clearing unauthorised structures and furnish a compliance report.

Though action is yet to be initiated, the BBMP's directive comes as a breather for many neighbourhoods that are grappling with similar problems as several land developers market their residential properties as private layouts.



The sign outside the park which layout residents claim has now been removed


RWA claims wall is for safety 

The MSR City RWA, President, Shashikanth S Kargudri says, "It was publicised as a gated community even before the sites were allotted to us. 

We are fighting for the compound wall because of the safety and security it offers our residents. If the gate and wall is removed, everyone will be open to come and it would be difficult for us to maintain the layout. 

There are several gated communities in the city why are they targeting only us. The BDA and BBMP did not have funds to maintain the ground and park, so we started collecting money from the residents and maintained it. Later the parks were adopted from us in an agreement with the BBMP and it would be open to the public. Earlier we had a board stating that entry to the park was restricted to residents of this layout, but now it has been removed and the public can walk in. So far the BBMP has not issued any notice to us on the demolition of the compound wall, which should be sent three weeks prior to demolition."



The permieter wall which has sparked the ire of
neighbouring residents


It is illegal
N Keshava Kumar, President of Bangalore Residents Welfare and Cultural Association, says, "It is not correct to erect a wall or gate for safety. The road and other things have been set up by the government and used by the public. Bringing security to the people living inside the layout is their choice and if they want use public property for his nobody will accept it."





City doesn't have gated community concept
The former BBMP Commissioner, Siddaiah, a civic expert says, "There is no concept like a gated community. They shall be part of the city. If gated communities are blocking traffic and causing inconvenience to the public they must be demolished. Is there no safety and security for those leaving outside the gate? It is not a defense establishment to put up a board that says entry prohibited."