Noida invites agencies for auditing builders’ accounts

The principal secretary for urban housing department, Mukul Singhal, who is also heading the real estate regulatory authority (RERA), also recommended an audit of Amrapali Group as it has failed to deliver flats in its Noida and Greater Noida projects

The Noida authority on Wednesday invited proposals from independent agencies for auditing accounts of builders who are yet to deliver housing projects.

The principal secretary on September 14 had appointed Debasish Panda, Greater Noida authority’s chief executive officer, to conduct a probe into Amrapali Group’s accounts under Section 35 of RERA (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath had on September 12 directed the chief executive officers of Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway to get an audit of builders, who are failing to deliver flats to homebuyers, conducted.

“We are likely to select more than one agency for this job within four weeks. The state government has given us three months to hire agencies and get an audit conducted. We need to send a report of the audit within three months,” said Tandon.

According to officials, the authority will pay Rs5 crore to each agency that is selected for the job.

Apart from the instructions of the chief minister for audit, the principal secretary for urban housing department, Mukul Singhal, who is also heading the real estate regulatory authority (RERA), also recommended an audit of Amrapali Group as it has failed to deliver flats in its Noida and Greater Noida projects.

Singhal on September 14 had appointed Debasish Panda, Greater Noida authority’s chief executive officer, to conduct a probe into Amrapali Group’s accounts under Section 35 of RERA. Singhal had also directed Panda to provide an 11-point report on Amrapali Group’s project details.

The Greater Noida authority has already started the process of hiring independent agencies for the audit.

“We are likely to select three agencies (for the audit) by the first week of October, as we have already started the process. Once the audit is finished, we will decide the list of firms for a forensic audit. If in the audit, it is proved that a builder has diverted funds collected from buyers, a forensic audit will be conducted for legal action against the builder,” a Greater Noida authority official said.

POINTS FOR AUDIT