RERA imposes fine, still doesn’t care

In Telangana, the RERA system under the jurisdiction of CM Revanth Reddy’s Urban Development Department has been poorly established. When TG RERA imposes fines on builders who do not follow regulations, some developers, agents, and real estate companies are refusing to pay these fines. They are taking it lightly, asking, “What will TG RERA do if the fines are not paid?” Since the establishment of the RERA system, it is known that notices have been issued to some organisations, and when there is no response from them, fines are imposed. However, builders and agents are ignoring them.

According to the RERA Act, any builder constructing more than 8 flats or on a plot larger than 500 square yards must compulsorily register with RERA. So far, about 9,000 projects have been registered with GHMC, HMDA, and other municipalities, but only 3,800 of them have been registered with RERA. This clearly shows negligence in the RERA registration process. TG RERA has been imposing heavy fines on builders who do not follow the regulations. From 2022 to 2024, fines ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 30 lakh were imposed on nearly 400 projects. However, in these two years, RERA has only collected Rs 85 lakh.

In 2023, notices were issued to 56 companies, with 13 companies receiving notices simultaneously. Along with these 13 companies, several real estate agents working with various companies also received notices. The companies that received notices include Neemsboro Group, Excellence Properties, Sanali Group, Urban Yards, Happy Dream Homes, Virata Developers, Rivendell Farms, Kavuri Hills, Seven Hills, Buildax, Sumadhura Infra, as well as agents from Happy Dreams Project, Virata Developers agent David Raju, Urban Yards agent Lakshminarayana, and Seven Hills agent J. Venkatesh. A fine of Rs 4.30 crore was imposed on these thirteen projects, but not a single company paid the fine. A fine of Rs 1.30 crores was imposed on the agents, but they too did not pay. However, it is important for the public to know what TG RERA did afterward regarding these companies and agents.

Last year, in a case, the court ordered the buyer of a house to pay Rs 12.1 lakhs back to Pagadala Constructions. The builder was fined Rs 2.69 lakhs. Recently, another notice was issued stating that a police case would be filed regarding this. However, so far, the concerned company has not paid the fine.

Will they be sent to jail?

In other states, the RERA authorities are acting strictly. If builders don’t respond to notices, fines are imposed, and if they still don’t comply, they are sent to the Sri Krishna Janmasthan. In Haryana’s RERA in Gurugram, a fine of Rs 2.50 crore was imposed on Brahma City. However, due to delays by the company, the management of the construction company was jailed for 24 days. They were released only after paying the fine. When will the TG RERA system act with such courage? When will it bring the builders who have cheated buyers back on track?

Is it that bad?