Panel lens on ‘diluted’ realty regulation law

Aparliamentary committee is examining whether the real estate regulation Act has been made weaker by states.

The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act or Rera, which comes into force from May 1, is supposed to protect the interests of the common man such as timely delivery of property by developer.

Various states, according to industry experts, have made certain changes in the Act such as not including existing projects or easing up punishment for non-completion of projects.

“The committee is trying to ensure the spirit of Rera remains intact. States cannot make changes in Rera that would make it a toothless Act. It is important that developers that do not adhere to the norms are punished. That is why they are reviewing and based on our observation we will give our recommendations,” said a source close to the committee.

The panel headed by Bharatiya Janata Party lawmaker Dilip Kumar Mansukhlal Gandhi has held one meeting on the issue and hopes to present its report in the monsoon session of Parliament likely in July.

According to the panel, there are quite a few examples of Rera being “tampered” with by the states. Gujarat, for one, excludes from the law properties developed before November 1, 2016.

In another case of Rera being diluted, Uttar Pradesh (UP) government will not include projects that have applied for completion certificates but not received them. Also, the law in UP would have projects where conveyance deed has been executed with 60 per cent buyers and incomplete projects where maintenance has been handed over to association of allottees.

“There are quite a few examples in front of the committee. They are collating all this data and all this would be part of their report,” added the source.