Second wave hits land registrations

Earnings from stamps and registration dept plunge

The second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic has put the brakes on the real estate businesses, which was booming in the initial months of the year.

People are afraid of venturing out and are postponing their plans to buy or sell property. Many are not interested in selling their property unless the money is good.

As a result, registrations in April dropped significantly. Only half of normal registrations had been reported in the first week of May. And, from May 12,

when the government announced a lockdown, it has come to a standstill.

In April, the department of stamps and registrations generated revenue of `580 crore. More than 4,500 documents were registered on an average every day to net `20 crore to

`25 crore.

Registrations halved in the first week of May. While 2,500 to

3,000 documents are registered per day, the daily income does not

exceed `12 crore. In the

11 days since the lockdown, 26,574 documents have been registered and they generated

`120 crore.Meanwhile, construction of large buildings also came to a grinding halt as many migrant workers headed home for fear of being caught in a lockdown.

Based on past experiences, some builders and real estate traders are working towards providing all facilities to their workers. It may be noted that many new projects were launched in the last three to four months after the first wave subsided.

Registrations of agricultural lands by Dharani have also fallen drastically. Compared to 19,477 registrations from April 1 to 10, it was a mere 13,311 registrations from May 1 to 10.

A total of 14,766 agriculture registrations were made through Dharani during the month, generating revenue of around `80 crore. Total revenue from registrations have not crossed `200 crore this month.