New policy to affect integrated township projects

Sun, Nov 8 06:06 AM

Developers who had their integrated township plans ready will now have to rework them in order to get the approval from the concerned authority.

The fresh draft of the policy, which has dropped the word "integrated" from it, has provisions that will affect the township projects in a big way.

"The integrated township includes hospitals, schools, offices and huge commercial establishments, while residential township has residential development with minimal shopping spaces. It doesn't have huge commercial establishments," said Jaxay Shah, the president of Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India, Gujarat.

In 2007, the government had announced the Gujarat Integrated Township Policy at the Vibrant Gujarat Urban Summit in Ahmedabad with investment proposals worth Rs 1.08 lakh crore at the summit. Two years have passed since then, but the government has now decided to come up with a fresh policy.

Some of the major players such as Sahara City Homes, which has already got the approval for a 104-acre township near Bopal as per sources, will have to resubmit its plan for permission.

"We have registered the township as a proposed housing scheme, which the Government of Gujarat has approved. We don't come under township norms."

Another soon-to-be-launched project to go through this process once again is a 250-acre township on the S G Highway by Godrej Properties.

Some of the important provisions made in the new policy include 10 per cent reservation in dwellings for the economically weaker sections in residential townships and special preference to registered co-operative societies of small and marginal farmers for housing in such townships.

Another important addition will make the developer acquire, own or pool the land at his own expense, provide and maintain all necessary infrastructure facilities, disclose to the beneficiaries all details of the building plan and design, and also execute a bank guarantee equivalent to 2 per cent of the total cost incurred on the infrastructure at the time of issuing building use permission for the township he may develop.

These, according to sources, were not mentioned in the earlier draft.

Ajay Pawar, Deputy General Manager Media & PR, Godrej Properties Limited, refused to comment on the issue.

Vijay Shah, the former president of Gujarat Institute of Housing and Estate Developers, said: "Those who have already drawn their plans will have to rework them according to the new policy. Most developers are waiting for the policy to be announced before they begin their projects."

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