Residents of Ansal Esencia protest against lack of power infra, ban on registry

Around 150 homebuyers of Ansal Esencia on Sunday protested against the developer of the housing project alleging that they were facing problems due to inadequate infrastructure and basic amenities, which were promised to them at the time of launching the project but have not been delivered till date.

Homebuyers alleged due to lack of adequate power infrastructure, the Dakshin Haryana Bijlee Vitran Nigam (DHVBN) has been refusing to grant new electricity connections in the last eight months. They also said due to legal issues of the real estate company, there has been a ban on registry of properties.

Spread over 140 acres, Ansal Esencia is a plotted colony spanning in sectors 67 and 67 A, which was launched in 2011 and has total 1,043 units. Homebuyers were given the possession of their flats in 2014. There are more than 2,000 families currently living in the society, said members of the residents’ welfare association.

On Sunday morning, around 150 residents gathered at the condominium and protested against the developer. They later submitted a complaint to the police at Sector 65 police station, seeking action against the developer and its officials.

Dharmender Tanwar, president of Ansal Esencia RWA, said residents, who have shifted in the last eight months, have failed to get new electricity connections as the infrastructure is not adequate. “The DHBVN has refused to grant new electricity connections for no fault of the buyers. We have complained about this repeatedly but to no avail,” he said.

Due to lack of adequate infrastructures in the colonies developed by private developers, the DHBVN has not been issuing new electricity connections to consumers.

In order to build pressure on the developers to meet their demands, the RWA has now decided to gather in large numbers at Ansal Bhawan in Delhi on Wednesday and hold a sit in protest till the promoters of the housing project meet them.

“There are many homebuyers who have been waiting to get the conveyance deeds of their purchased properties but have not been able to do so even after paying the full amount to the developer. Due to legal issues, the revenue authorities have banned registry of property deeds,” said Tanwar.

He added pipelines for storm water drainage and the sewage treatment plant were also much below the required capacity, causing residents to suffer due to heavy waterlogging during monsoon.

Another resident, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said several families, who wanted to shift to their new houses, were not able to do so as the power connections are not being released by DHBVN. “The developer has not constructed the 33 KV substation for the residential complex,” he said.

When approached, a senior official of the developer said they were aware of the issues and were trying to resolve them on priority basis. “Around four transformers will be offloaded in the colony to improve power supply within this week. We are also working on arranging bank guarantees to be given to DHBVN and this process will be completed in next 60 days. We are committed to resolve the problems that homebuyers are facing,” he said.

The official added the issue of resuming the registration of properties by the revenue department has also been taken up with the authorities. “We are hopeful that this issue will be resolved soon,” he said.

A police officer at Sector 65 police station, where the RWA submitted a complaint, confirmed that residents of Ansal Esencia lodged a complaint against the developer with regard to lack of infrastructure and poor maintenance. “We will look into the matter and take necessary action,” he said.