State ULBs can now issue advance notice to defaulting promoters

Kolkata: Now, the urban local bodies (ULBs) across the state can issue advance notice to defaulting owners or developers of a building and impose a penalty on them for not obtaining a completion certificate (CC) from the concerned municipality before selling their flats.

The move comes in the backdrop of the state Urban Development and Municipal Affairs (UD&MA) department coming across a number of instances where mutation of flats of multi-storied residential buildings are pending in municipalities due to non-submission of CC of the said building. The non-mutation of flats has resulted in loss of revenue of the municipalities to a great extent.

“Owners/developers not obtaining CC from the concerned municipality before sale of their flats is a gross violation of provisions of section 212 of the West Bengal Municipal Act, 1993. Consequently, the mutation of flats are not done by the concerned municipalities as the West Bengal Municipal Act, 1993 does not permit use of building until the CC of the building is obtained by the owner/developer from the municipality which happens to be the building plan sanctioning authority,” said an official of the UD&MA department.

A notification issued by the UD & MA department states: “Now, therefore, in the event of such type of contravention of provisions of the West Bengal Municipal Act, 1993 and the Rules framed there-under, the municipalities may decide to issue advance notice to the defaulter owner/developer/builder and thereafter to impose penalty as specified in Schedule IV...”