NBCC asked to provide rent, shifting charges to EWS flat occupants

The department of town and country planning (DTCP) on Thursday issued a notice to NBCC (India) Limited, formerly known as National Buildings Construction Corporation Limited, and directed that modalities to provide occupants of EWS flats in NBCC Green View condominium in Sector 37D with rental relief of six months and one-time shifting charges be worked out at the earliest.

The department also said that residents will not be shifted forcefully and will be given enough time to ensure that their livelihood is not impacted.

RS Bhath, district town planner (enforcement) and duty magistrate for NBCC society, who issued the notice, said that around 22 families living in the main condominium have received rental relief so far and have shifted out. “We have asked the developer to provide rental relief for six months and one-time shifting charges to ensure no hardship is caused to occupants of EWS flats. They will not be shifted forcefully and due time will be given to them,” he said.

The notice to NBCC comes in the view of Gurugram deputy commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav’s February 17 order, which invoked the National Disaster Management Act 2005, declared the NBCC Green View project unsafe due to structural reasons and said it must be vacated by March 1.

The deputy commissioner also directed NBCC to provide alternative accommodation to occupants or provide them rent as well as shifting charges. The developer was also asked to work out a plan for refunding owners, who wanted to take their money back.

The notice said that NBCC has not provided any relief to the occupants of EWS flats to date and this may lead to a violation of the February 17 order. “Under the said order it is your responsibility to provide immediate relief to the occupants. Please appreciate that the occupants of EWS units are from the lowest strata of society and they can’t be left to fend for themselves owing to evacuation. I hereby direct you to work out modalities to provide advance rent of six months plus one-time shifting charges as agreed by the occupant. This relief is given to occupants irrespective of their ownership status,” the notice said.

Randhir Singh, general secretary, NBCC Green View Apartment Owners’ Association said that the developer should work on refunding their investments so that they can buy flats elsewhere. “We simply want a refund. The EWS occupants must also be helped and evacuated,” he said.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson affirmed that NBCC is a responsible enterprise and is extending all possible support to the homebuyers. “NBCC shall provide six months advance rentals and one-time shifting expenses for all occupants. NBCC is continuously engaging with the buyers as well as the district administration to evacuate the occupants for safety purposes,” the spokesperson said.

The NBCC Green View project was launched in 2010 and residents were given possession in 2017. The condominium comprises 784 regular and 139 economically weaker section (EWS) apartments, of which 255 have been sold. One-hundred-and-seventy-seven flats have been registered so far, according to authorities.