Working on strategy to check illegal colonies: Punjab minister Aman Arora

Tribune News Service

Rajmeet Singh

Chandigarh, July 21

The Punjab Housing and Urban Development Department and the Local Government Department are working on a joint strategy to regulate urban development and check the mushrooming of illegal colonies in the state.

“Withdrawing from the approach of the previous governments under which there was little deterrence against those carving out illegal colonies, a comprehensive mechanism is now being put into place to stop the menace of illegal colonies and provide basic amenities to the approved colonies," Housing and Urban Development Minister Aman Arora told The Tribune.

Will stop the menace

Withdrawing from the approach of the previous governments under which there was little deterrence against those carving out illegal colonies, a mechanism is now being put into place to stop this menace. —Aman Arora, Housing and Urban Development Minister

A meeting between him and Local Government Minister Inderbir Singh Nijjar, along with the Secretaries of the two departments, was held on Thursday evening to iron out inter-departmental issues.

Already, a committee formed by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to sort out the issue of no objection certificate (NOC) for sale deeds of properties in illegal colonies has come out with clear-cut guidelines. Last month, orders were issued to stop the sale of plots/buildings in these colonies without obtaining the NOC, which has to be issued by the competent authority from the plot/building owner.

In the absence of clear instructions from the government, the genuine buyers in illegal colonies are bereft of basic amenities besides facing difficulties in getting their properties registered. As per information, there are over 14,000 illegal colonies in the state.

The Housing Minister also asked officials of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority to ensure a quick property dispute redressal mechanism. Chairing a meeting at the office of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA), Punjab, the minister asked RERA to ensure compliance of the obligations cast upon promoters, allottees and real estate agents.

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