Punjab Apartment and Property Regulation Amendment Act: An explainer

Chandigarh, Sep 3 (IANS) The Punjab Apartment and Property Regulation (Amendment) Bill, which was passed in the Assembly on Tuesday, seeks to solve the hardships faced by small plot holders in getting property measuring up to 500 square yards registered.

The Bill amends Section 20 of the Punjab Apartment and Property Regulation Act, 1995, which now reads: “Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or in any other law of Punjab for the time being in force, any person up to July 31, 2024, for an area up to 500 square yards situated in an unauthorized colony, has entered into a power of attorney, agreement to sell on stamp paper, or any other such document as the state government may by notification specify, shall be entitled to get registration of such an area executed before a Registrar or Sub-Registrar or Joint Sub-Registrar and this exemption of getting such an area registered shall be available up to such date as may be notified by the government in this behalf.”

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who tabled the amendment Bill in the Assembly on Tuesday, said that all those who have either purchased plots before July 31 this year or those who have paid the initial money and can prove that the sale is legal, would benefit from the move.

“All such transactions of plots will be considered as legal transactions, and all civic amenities will be provided to such plot holders,” he underlined.

“Giving a big relief to crores of people, the condition of NOC at the time of registration of plots has been abolished… Along with this, the penalty and punishment against mafias developing illegal colonies has been made more stringent,” Mann added.

He said this is a major reprieve for the common man as this amendment aims to overcome the problem being faced by the public in the registration of their plots and to put a check on the development of unauthorised colonies.

Mann said this amendment also stipulates provisions of penalty and punishment for the offenders, adding that “it is a historic decision aimed at ensuring the wellbeing of the common man”.

“There are around 14,000 illegal colonies in Punjab, in which there are lakhs of individual plots. The regularisation policy that we have brought is not for colonies, but individual plot holders. This will benefit lakhs of people. Its provisions state that if someone has brought a plot from a coloniser before July 31, 2024, and has transferred advance payment, they can get their registry done without NOC till November 2,” Housing and Urban Development Minister Aman Arora told media persons after the passing of the Bill.

The previous Congress government led by Amarinder Singh had brought the Punjab Laws (Special Provisions for Regularisation of Unauthorised Colonies) Act, 2018, which specified that the sale agreements of such colonies or individual plots must have been executed before March 19, 2018. The amendment has extended the date.

The Punjab Apartment and Property Regulation Act, 1995, provided for the establishment of new colonies, granting Iicenses and for regulation of construction therein. In order to curb the proliferation of unauthorized colonies and make the provisions of the Act investor-friendly, the Punjab Apartment and Property Regulation Act, 1995, was amended in 2014.

However, the said amendments caused undue hardship to the small plot holders to get the NOC for registration of sale deeds, electricity connections, etc., instead of meeting its objectives of controlling unauthorised colonies in the state. Therefore, control over illegal colonisation has to be stringent, besides giving relief to the small plotholders. Hence, in order to overcome the problem being faced by the public in registration of their plots and to put a check on the development of unauthorised colonies and construction and enforce the provisions of penalty and punishment to offenders, certain amendments in the Punjab Apartment and Property Regulation Act, 1995, had been proposed.

–IANS

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