Despite reduction in reserve price, e-auction brings little cheer to CHB

Dushyant Singh Pundir

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 19

Reduction in reserve price of leasehold commercial units provided little relief to the Chandigarh Housing Board (CHB) after its auctions repeatedly receiving a lukewarm response.

The CHB had decided to reduce the reserve price of its vacant commercial and residential properties on a leasehold basis by 20 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively. The move followed a tepid response to its last three e-auctions. After reducing the reserve prices, the CHB had invited e-bids for the sale of 191 vacant units — 132 commercial and 31 residential units on a leasehold basis and 28 residential units on a freehold basis in the city.

However, the CHB sold 19 commercial and four residential units on leasehold basis and nine residential units on freehold basis to the highest bidders after the e-bids were opened today.

Yashpal Garg, Chief Executive Officer, CHB, said the total highest bid amount was 12.04 per cent above the total reserve prices. “However, in case of commercial units, the average highest bids are 21.40 per cent higher than the average reserve prices,” he added.

The CHB earned a total revenue of Rs16.29 crore from the e-auction of nine residential units on freehold basis and four residential and 19 commercial units on leasehold basis against the total reserve price of Rs14.54 crore, he added.

Since the e-bids were opened today, the highest bidder is required to pay the 25 per cent of the bid amount by October 27 to avoid forfeiture of the earnest money deposit and blacklisting from future tendering processes of the CHB, added Garg.

In the previous e-auction, the CHB was just able to sell only three commercial units out of 151 and five residential units out of 38 on leasehold basis. In the e-auction of commercial and residential properties on a leasehold basis held on July 1, the CHB could sell only 12 units out of 156 and two residential units out of 11.