CHANDIGARH: Punjab Government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann today passed the Punjab Apartment and Property Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2024 in Vidhan Sabha, allowing registration of residential plots upto 500 sq feet in the illegal colonies across the state. There are about 14000 illegal colonies in the state. The decision smells of a big scam in the making.
The decision of the AAP government is considered a step to real estate developers who had lured the innocent investors and sold the plots in illegal colonies. While it was exected that Punjab Government would act tough against the notorious colonisers who fleeced the people, the government has allowed them to go scot free. it is likely that colonises would regularise their deals without paying for their misdeds. The decision is bound to encourage corruption in the revenue department.
Aman Arora cabinet minister mentioned that it took two and a half years to the state Government to bring this legislation to address the issues being faced by buyers of plots in illegal colonies and to serve as a deterrent for the future.
He slammed the previous governments for supporting illegal colonisers, resulting in the emergence of urban slums. Two amendments were introduced in the PAPRA Act, 1995 in 2014, 2016 and 2018, but these changes primarily favoured illegal colonisers rather than addressing the issues faced by the general public. Currently, approximately 14, 000 illegal colonies have sprung up across the state.
Aman Arora said that individuals who have written sale agreement, possess a power of attorney and have bank transactions dated before July 31, 2024, for the acquisition of plots up to 500 yards, can proceed with the registration until November 2 of this year without requiring any No Objection Certificate (NOC).
Allaying the concerns of opposition, Mr. Aman Arora said that this legislation does not aim to legalise illegal colonies; instead, it focuses on registration of plots of up to 500 yards within unauthorised colonies. This strategy aims to deter illegal colonisation, unlike past administrations that inadvertently encouraged such practices. Plots lacking a sale agreement or bank transactions before July 31 will not fall under the purview of this Act.