A lot more needs to be done to utilise full potential of RERA legislation: Housing and Urban Affairs Minister

New Delhi [India], May 9 : While complimenting the distance traversed in the implementation of Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act and its success stories, Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep S Puri stated that a lot more needs to be done to utilise the full potential of this path-breaking legislation.

The minister was addressing the fourth meeting of the Central Advisory Council (CAC) constituted under RERA which comes in the ambit of the chairmanship of the Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs.

Various issues related to the implementation of RERA, issue of non-compliance of orders passed by regulatory authorities, concerns related to safety of construction workers, issue of legacy stalled projects, issue of dilution of provisions of RERA and awareness campaign for RERA were deliberated in detail, according to a statement from the ministry of housing and urban affairs.

The Council noted that in compliance with the decision taken in its third meeting, a committee has been constituted under the chairmanship of Amitabh Kant, G20 Sherpa, with the objective to examine and recommend ways to complete the legacy stalled projects and to handover the homes to the homebuyers in a time-bound manner.

The Council, according to the statement, noted that two meetings of this Committee have already been convened on April 24, 2023, and May 8, 2023. It hoped that under the dynamic leadership of Amitabh Kant, the Committee will be able to suggest pragmatic measures to resolve the issues related to legacy stalled projects finally resulting in handover of dwelling units to homebuyers.

Moreover, the issue of non-compliance of orders passed by real estate regulatory authorities was also discussed. In this regard, the Council deliberated on best practices of certain states regarding the execution of orders passed by real estate regulatory authority which have worked successfully.

Keeping in view the importance of speedy and effective execution of orders passed by the real estate regulatory authorities, it was decided that the ministry of housing and urban affairs will compile the best practices in this regard and circulate the same to all the states/Union Territories and other stakeholders for consideration, the ministry said in the statement.

Furthermore, the issue of dilution of provisions of RERA was also deliberated. The Council observed that the matter is sub-judice and further necessary action will be taken by the ministry of housing and urban affairs as per the directions of the Supreme Court.

Further, in order to generate more awareness amongst all the stakeholders, the Council advised that conclave and awareness programme may be orgsed in collaboration with National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO), Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Associations (CREDAI), Forum for People's Collective Efforts (FPCE).

It was also decided that the possibility of involving All India Forum of Real Estate Regulatory Authorities (AIFORERA) in orgsing workshops and awareness campaigns may also be explored.

The representatives of the associations of homebuyers and developers, officers from the Central and state governments, chairpersons and senior functionaries of the Real Estate Regulatory Authorities and Appellate Tribunals of various States/Union Territories also attended the meeting.

The enactment of the Real Estate (Regulation & Development) Act, 2016 (RERA) marked the beginning of a new era in real estate sector as a step towards reforming the sector, encouraging greater transparency, citizen-centricity, accountability, and financial discipline, thus empowering the home buyers, according to the statement. The ministry said it was committed to protect the rights and interest of homebuyers.