E-Paper
Chandigarh business representatives continue protest over amendments in Capital Act
Following the protest over amendments in Capital Act, including hike in the penalty on building violations, Chandigarh administration extended the date of filing objections to May 6.
Continuing their protest against the proposed 400-time hike in the penalty on building violations under proposed amendments of Capital of Punjab (Development and Regulation) Act, 1952, the Chandigarh Coordination Committee, an umbrella group for 27 organisations, on Monday staged a protest outside the UT Secretariat, Sector 9.
Later, they submitted their objections in writing to the UT administration.
Following the protest, UT administration on Monday extended the date of filing objections to May 6.
The members said the proposed increase of penalty from ₹500 in the original act to ₹2 lakh, followed by ₹8,000 per day, is exorbitantly high. They added that UT administration should convene a meeting of Chandigarh Coordination Committee representatives with senior officials including UT adviser, finance secretary and others to discuss the crucial issue.
Protesters dubbed the concept of annual increase of 5% as “completely unwarranted”, saying the penalty should not be considered as a revenue-earning exercise like water tariff and electricity charges.
UT’s public notice on draft amendment with respect to the building misuse violations, meanwhile, reads, “Any person who contravenes the provisions of sub-section (2) of Section 4 or Section 6 of the Act shall, on conviction, be punishable with fine, which may extend to ₹2 lakh, and a further fine, which may extend to ₹8,000 for each day during which the offence is proved to have continued after the first day.”
The penalty was also proposed to be increased by 5% annually, but maximum penalty levied on any person may not exceed 20% of the total value of the property calculated as per the prevalent collector rate on the date of adjudication.
