Bill injects speed in construction sector

The clearance of the Real Estate Regulatory Bill in both houses of Parliaments has injected speed in the realty sector as projects that are under construction, especially those delayed, are being speed up as the developers will go all out to avoid stringent provisions of the new real estate regulatory bill. The bill, which seeks to protect the rights of home buyers, mandates registration of projects, including those that have not got completion or occupancy certificates and that registration will require builders to set aside funds collected from buyers and pay interest in case of delays. Experts said registration of projects may still be some 15-18 months away, enough time for those that are currently 60-70% complete. Of 17,000 projects under construction in the top 27 cities, 56% are at least 60% complete, according to property research firm Liases Foras. The real estate bill would be an additional cause to finish construction quickly as registering existing projects might delay them further, said, managing director of Mumbai-based Hiranandani group, Niranjan Hiranandani, adding that builders will want to use this time to complete projects so that they have less regulation.