Gurgaon: RERA rules in homebuyers’ favour, TCP insists

With Gurgaon homebuyers angry over Haryana’s RERA, the town and country planning department insists that the new rules are meant to bring them relief

The department of town and country planning (TCP) said the rules of Haryana’s Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) are in homebuyers’ favour and will redress their grievances against developers.

Homebuyers have alleged that the TCP diluted Central RERA rules in Haryana to benefit developers. (Parveen Kumar/HT Photo)

Homebuyers have alleged that the TCP diluted Central RERA rules to benefit developers. In Haryana’s version of the RERA Act, developers who have occupation certificate (OC) will be outside RERA’s ambit. Taking advantage of this, developers whose projects are delayed or who are not in a position to deliver homes applied with the TCP to obtain OCs. Homebuyers said the TCP will not initiate action against developers who have applied for OCs.

Responding to this, Arun Kumar Gupta, financial commissioner (FC), TCP, Haryana said, “The Haryana government included OCs as per provision of the Central RERA. Applying for OC does not ensure that developers will be exempted from penalties under RERA. This is a major point of confusion and I wish to clarify that OCs will be granted to developers only after site inspections are conducted by officials. If OCs are rejected, the TCP will grant the developer a month to apply for registration under RERA.”

“Our focus is on homebuyers who have been deprived of timely delivery of their flats. This will be crystal clear in a couple of months. The TCP is not going to let any defaulting builder go,” said Gupta.

As per RERA rules, no promoter shall advertise, market, book, sell or offer for sale, or invite persons to purchase in any manner any plot, apartment or building, as the case may be, in any real estate project or part of it, in any planning area, without registering the real estate project.

“We appeal to people to inform the department immediately after they find RERA violations. The Act has adequate provisions to tighten the noose on developers for violating the rules,” said Dilbag Singh, executive director, Haryana RERA.