Noida: Homebuyers’ association to take over, finish delayed flats

For the first time, a homebuyers’ association of a residential highrise will takeover and complete the project their developer failed to deliver.

Jaiprakash Associate Limited’s (JAL’s) Kalypso Court in sector 128, along the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway, was launched in 2007 and was to have 1,140 residential units. However, the developer missed its deadline 2010-2011, forcing the homebuyers’ association to approach the Uttar Pradesh real estate regulatory authority (UP-Rera) in 2019.

Last week, the authority offered the buyers’ association — progressive welfare society — the job of completing it, invoking the UP-Rera Act.

“As per the sections 7 and 8 of the Act, we have the option to deregister the project and invite the buyers’ associations to take over the stuck project and deliver the same,” said Balvinder Kumar, member, UP-Rera. “JAL gave its consent and we allowed the buyers’ association to take control.”

Interestingly, the association decided to hire JAL as the contractor for the work, which includes completing the remaining 304 residential units.

While JAL refused to comment, Jayesh Patel, the president of the association, said, “UP-Rera allowed us to hire JAL as a contractor. We did not have any issue with the quality of JAL’s work, only the delay. We hired JAL because they constructed the entire project so they can do a better job. Funding is also not a problem for us. We hope the construction work will be started in a week’s time and complete in 12 months.”This is not the first time that the UP-Rera has used these sections of the law.

Earlier, the authority had offered to give a housing project in sector 119 to its buyers. But the promoter went to the national company law tribunal and the takeover never happened.

Last week, along with Kalypso Court, two other projects — Bhasin Group’s Festival City in sector 143 and PSA Impex’s Sampda Livia in Greater Noida — were offered to their respective buyers’s associations.

The Festival City is spread over 25 acres and has space for shops, offices and residential villas. It was launched in 2012 and supposed to be delivered by 2016, but the developer could only construct the civil structure .

“We do not have any technical experience and also lack funds to finish such a big project. Therefore we have decided to not accept the RERA’s offer,” said Festival City welfare association president Rajiv Nijhawan.

Satendar Singh Bhasin, its promoter, said that buyers could not take over the project in any case as there is an ongoingcase in Allahabad High Court against the Noida authority that had allegedly not allotted the land properly. “Until the land issue is decided in the high court, the buyers’ taking over is not possible,” said Bhasin.
Similarly the Sampada Livia buyers are not too keen to take over the project. PSA Impex, which was to develop it, could only construct 10% of the ₹220 crore project of around 750 units that was to be delivered in 2012-13.

“An association lacks the required strength to finish and deliver such a project. During this time no bank will fund such a project then how can we be deliver it,” said Kapil Chauhan, a member of the association.

PSA Impex was not available for comment.“If the associations refuse the offer then we invite proposals from a new developer who may be interested in delivering the same,” Kumar UP-Rera.