DTCP scans 1,500 occupation certificates amid architect violations probe

Flying squad inspections across key colonies found serious lapses, including OCs issued for incomplete buildings and unauthorised post-approval changes.

Around 1,500 occupation certificates (OCs) issued under the self-certification policy between July 1, 2025, and March 15, 2026, are under scrutiny, the department of town and country planning (DTCP) said on Tuesday, amid a probe into alleged violations by empanelled private architects.

DTCP scans 1,500 occupation certificates amid architect violations probe

Officials said action will be taken against architects found to have issued OCs in violation of rules or for incomplete constructions. The scrutiny follows an ongoing investigation by the chief minister’s flying squad, which began last week to verify the validity of OCs issued in private licensed colonies.

DTCP officials said the probe has already uncovered multiple violations across several areas. Inspections conducted till Tuesday covered 30 buildings and colonies including Ansal Essencia, Anant Raj, South City-1, South City-2, and Sector-61. “In several buildings, changes were found to be made after obtaining OCs, but in around 20 cases serious lapses have been found, and some buildings have been issued OCs even when the construction is not complete,” officials said.

They added that in some cases, alterations were made that were not part of the original sanctioned plans, while in others, additions were carried out after OCs had already been issued.

Inspector Suresh Chander of the CM Flying Squad, who is probing the matter of OCs said that they have previously conducted investigation into around 30 buildings in different colonies, and now they are identifying the clusters where these buildings are located in private colonies licensed by DTCP department. “We will soon be conducting another raid to investigate more OCs,” he said.

Under the self-certification policy introduced in 2022, architects empanelled with DTCP are authorised to issue OCs for low-risk, plotted residential and industrial buildings after verifying compliance with the Haryana Building Code 2017 (HBC). All OCs in privately licensed plotted colonies are issued by such architects.

An OC is granted when a building is deemed fit for occupancy and complies with departmental norms.

Officials pointed out that under the regulatory framework, the DTP (planning) office can examine only 10% of OC files submitted by architects, selected randomly through a software system.