Sukhbir halves compounding fee

Regularisation of colonies: Relief for owners of smaller plots,illegal slum dwellers

In a virtual climbdown by the Punjab government over the issue of regularisation of illegal colonies in the state,Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Wednesday slashed by half the compounding fee to be paid by individual plot owners.

Owners of plots,which are less than 50 square yards and those living in illegal slums,will not be charged anything. Earlier,regularisation charges of plots owners varied from Rs 50 per square yard to Rs 500 per square yard.

Succumbing to pressure from its ally BJP,SAD agreed to give major relief to illegal developers. According to sources,colonies that came into being between 1995 to 2007 will now pay 0.5 per cent of the then collector rates as compounding fee. Those which came into being after 2007 will pay 2 per cent of the then collector rates. Earlier,under the policy,developers were required to pay compounding varying from Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 15 lakh per acre.

The decision comes after a committee headed by Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia submitted a report on the issue to him. Sukhbir had constituted the committee during his recent visit to Ludhiana where a host of illegal developers protested against the policy.

The policy applicable for a period of one year starting April 1,2013 was cleared by the cabinet early this month. The Punjab Assembly had approved the move in its Budget Session. Only those unapproved colonies or the buildings constructed before the April 1 have been considered under this policy.

This is a one-time opportunity given by the government to developers and plot holders to get their offenses compounded and regularised and to improve the amenities in these areas.

This entire process will be completed by March 31,2014. The policy will affect almost 5,300 illegal colonies where almost 2 lakh people live.

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