Gurugram puts sale and resale of flats in all Chintels Paradiso projects on hold

The revenue department has been asked to stop registering sale deeds of projects developed by Chintels Paradiso, the housing complex where multiple ceilings in a building collapsed this month

The district deputy commissioner’s office on Monday asked the revenue department to stop registering sale deeds of projects developed by Chintels Paradiso, the housing society where multiple ceilings in a building collapsed on February 10, killing two residents.

This comes after two people died as multiple ceilings collapsed in a Chintels Paradiso building on February 10. (Vipin Kumar /HT PHOTO)

Gurugram deputy commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav said, “Prima facie, it appears that the developer was at fault and accordingly two cases were registered. In the light of the incident at Chintels Paradiso, I have directed the departments to refrain from registering documents related to any property of the five projects being developed by Chintels until further directions.”

Yadav said Chintels developed five residential projects over areas of 12.30 acres, 20.16 acres, 39.16 acres, 15.88 acres and 166 acres and two commercial projects. “No one will be allowed to buy or sell any of these apartments. There were five residential projects that were on the verge of being sold. Out of the two commercial projects, one is yet not developed,” he said.

Yadav said they were waiting for reports to determine the exact cause of the February 10 incident.

“The developer was carrying out some renovation work on the sixth and seventh floors in Tower D of Chintels Paradiso, following which the ceiling of a portion of the sixth floor flat collapsed on February 10, leading to the floors underneath caving in. We are still waiting for the reports to know the exact cause of the incident,” he said.

Residents also demanded that the sale of properties by the developer be stopped as they are not safe and will pose a threat to the lives of residents.

Sonam Arora, a resident of Chintels Paradiso, said, “The developer should be arrested at the earliest for negligence. They used poor construction materials that led to the collapse, taking the lives of two residents. We are living in fear and urge the authorities to make sure that we get a refund of our hard-earned money, so that we can invest in some other society.”

Meanwhile, the authorities are working to shift the affected residents into temporary accommodation within the society.

RS Bhath, district town planner (enforcement), said that renovation work is almost complete in Towers A, B, C and J, where the residents will be shifted temporarily, and will be completed by Thursday. “We are ensuring that all residents are satisfied with the arrangements. The repair work is almost over under my supervision, and we will ensure that the residents get all basic facilities before they are shifted,” he said.

Officials said a three-member team from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, visited the complex last week to conduct a structural safety audit and is yet to submit a report.

The developer did not comment on the matter despite several attempts.