Authority offers plots to Noida’s nursing homes

NOIDA: Offering relief to the 50-odd nursing homes operating from residential plots displaced by a Supreme Court order, Noida Authority has decided to launch a scheme to allot them alternate plots across the city. This decision was approved in the 176th board meeting of the Authority on Monday.

Authority CEO, Sanjeev Saran, said, “To begin with, a scheme for 11 plots across the city, ranging between 1,000 and 1,950 sqm will be launched soon. Allotments will be made to interested parties by August 3. In case more nursing homes show interest, the Authority will think about allotting more plots.” The price of the plots will be at par with prevailing prices in the sectors where they will be located, he added.

The Authority’s decision to help the displaced nursing homes relocate is in accordance with the Supreme Court order dated May 4, 2012. The court had at the time directed the Authority to allot land at reasonable rates within three months. The court had also clarified that the benefit would not apply to individual doctors.

Following the December 5, 2011 Supreme Court ruling directing all nursing homes and banks to shift out of residential plots, the Noida Authority had directed them to shut operations immediately. The Authority then conducted a new survey of the residential sectors to identify defaulting nursing homes and to segregate them from clinics that are operating from the permissible 25% area of the total FAR of residential plots.

Displaced nursing home owners then approached the apex court seeking relief. The Supreme Court then permitted clinics to house one bed for emergency cases on the condition that the area of operation would be restricted to the permissible 25% area of the ground floor of their respective premises.

In the board meeting, the Authority also announced that a scheme offering 15 more plots across the city will be launched soon to help relocate the displaced bank branches that had earlier been operating from residential plots.

NH-24 to be widened soon

NOIDA: Widening of the NH-24 between the Delhi border and Dasna into a six-lane corridor is finally going to start this month after the Noida Authority and National Highways Authority of India met on Tuesday and gave approval to the project. While tenders for the proposed project will be released later this month, the widening is estimated to cost Rs 150 crore.

The broadening of the 21km stretch from UP Gate to Dasna, which is used by over 2 lakh vehicles on a weekday, will bring relief to commuters who often get caught in long jams. “Once this project is complete, it will improve connectivity between Delhi and parts of Ghaziabad and Noida,” said Pramanshu Kumar, Additional CEO, Noida Authority. “The expansion of NH-24 is of utmost importance. Given the traffic load on the stretch, the widening work will now be fast tracked to avoid any further delay,” Kumar said.

After the widening, an additional lane of 3.5m width will be available on either side of the carriageway. The ACEO said that five underpasses would be constructed at regular intervals so that traffic between Noida and Indirapuram would be smooth without going to NH-24.

Presently, the four-lane road from Ghaziabad border to Dasna is one of the most congested highway corridors in the country. Once completed, this stretch would become almost signal-free. Unlike the Delhi-Gurgaon expressway, this stretch will not be a toll road. Sources said this decision was taken considering that a large section of the traffic using this stretch is local. The traffic on this road is expected to grow in view of increased occupancy in residential areas along NH-24, including Indirapuram and Crossings Republik, the two big sub-cities of Ghaziabad.

Though the plan for the widening of the stretch was conceived almost six years ago, somehow it did not take off. Due to traffic congestion on UP border-Dasna stretch, the exercise to develop it as a six-lane route was re-started three years back.

The NH-24 starts from Nizamuddin from Delhi and ends at Lucknow via Hapur, Moradabad, Bareilly and Sitapur. The stretch between Nizamuddin Bridge and Indirapuram is one of the busiest during peak hours. About two years ago, the daily traffic movement on this stretch was nearly 1.4 lakh passenger car units (PCUs). A traffic survey by Rites in 2008 showed that vehicular growth on this stretch had increased by almost 200% more than the highway’s carrying capacity.

In April earlier this year, the highway ministry had proposed to carry out the work of the widening on contract and a tender was also floated, but the plan was scrapped later. NHAI had then proposed to widen this portion as part of the Delhi-Meerut expressway project on build, operate and transfer (BOT-toll) mode. In that case, private developers would have financed the entire project.

Many Noida plots for select few

Business houses and real estate developers cornered several farmhouse plots, some as many as 11 and eight, at throwaway prices in prime sectors of Noida under a scheme — which is now under a probe — floated by the government of former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati.

Over 150 were given the plots after screening by a government-appointed committee. There was no bidding. The probe was ordered in May after a note by Noida CEO Sanjeev Saran said plots of 10,000 sq m each were allotted to 120 companies and 29 individuals at low rates.

In some cases, relatives or acquaintances got multiple plots flanking the expressway connecting Noida and Greater Noida, where property prices have shot up in recent years.

The full list of beneficiaries has now been accessed by The Indian Express through a Right to Information application and government sources.

Companies promoted by Ghaziabad industrialists Gyan Prakash Goel and Anil Kumar Mittal and their family members were allotted 11 farmhouse plots, each measuring 10,000 sq m.

Real estate firm 3C Universal Developers Pvt Ltd’s promoters, directors and shareholders, and their companies took eight plots.

Dharampal Satyapal Sons Pvt Ltd, makers of Rajnigandha paan masala, and its promoters and directors together got six plots.

Businessman Gurdeep Singh Chadha, better known as Ponty Chadha, bagged a plot along with Rajinder Singh Chadha and Javed Ahmed as promoter-cum-director of Brilliant Builders Pvt Ltd. His wife Jatinder Kaur was allotted another plot as promoter-cum-director of Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers Pvt Ltd. Ajay Rastogi, an official in Ponty Chadha’s liquor business, too got a plot.

In April 2011, The Indian Express was the first to report on the farmland scheme, under which the father-son duo of lawyers Shanti Bhushan and Jayant Bhushan bagged two plots for a song.

Many Noida plots for select few

Two plots went to Unnati Infratech Pvt Ltd whose director and promoter is Alka Vikram, wife of Lalit Vikram Basantwani, who was General Manager (Finance) of the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority and Yamuna Expressway Authority. He was suspended after Income Tax searches this year.

A plot measuring 10,360 sq m was allotted to Alka Das, wife of Akhilesh Das Gupta who is currently a BSP Rajya Sabha MP; Vineet Nayar, CEO of HCL Technologies India, took home a nearly 10,000-sq m plot. Former additional solicitor general of India Vikas Singh also got a plot. When contacted, Nayar and Singh confirmed they had been allotted plots.

The Mayawati government had acquired agricultural land in seven villages along the expressway and put them on sale under the Open Ended Scheme For Development of Farm House on Agricultural Land (OES-V) 2008-09. The scheme offered plots across Noida sectors 126, 127, 128, 131, 133, 149 A, 162, 164, 165 and 167.

An audit by the state government’s Local Fund Audit Department found that the Noida Authority fixed a rate of Rs 3,100 per sq m for the plots. In the second part of the scheme launched in September 2010, the rate was revised to Rs 3,500 per sq m plus additional location charges.

When his comments were sought on the plot rate, Anil Kumar Sharma, Chairman and Managing Director of Amrapali Group, said the rate for a farmhouse plot in the area was approximately Rs 20,000-22,000 per sq m.

Nearly two months after The Indian Express wrote about the farmland allotment to the Bhushans, the Noida Authority came up with an explanation that agricultural land was being marked for farmhouses “to avoid illegal constructions”. In a letter to Alok Kumar, Secretary, UP government, the Authority stated: “Many cities have farmhouses on agricultural land, so we propose that agricultural land be marked for farmhouses in such areas to avoid illegal constructions.”

The farmhouse plot scheme beneficiaries include:

Ghaziabad industrialists Goels and Mittals: 11 plots

Plots allotted to Ravindra Almirahs Pvt Ltd, Mars Infrabuild Pvt Ltd, AKC Hydropower (P) Ltd, Inspire Infrastructure (P) Ltd, Seven Star Buildtech Pvt Ltd, S B Coolers Pvt Ltd, AKG Infotech Pvt Ltd. Promoters, directors, shareholders of these companies include Gyan Prakash Goel, Madhu Goel, Abhinav Goel, Vaibhav Mittal, Mridula Mittal, Anil Kumar Mittal, Anil Kumar Gupta.

Vaibhav Mittal said: “We got farmhouse plots but in our individual capacity.” Asked about the 11 farmhouse plots, Gyan Prakash Goel said: “I have knowledge about a few companies, not all. Anil Mittal is a friend and business partner. But I cannot comment on farmhouses.”

3C Universal Developers Pvt Ltd: 8 plots

Individual plots allotted to Nirmal Singh, Surpreet Singh Suri, Vidur Bhardwaj and wife Richa Bhardwaj — all shown as promoters and directors — Constant eFine Infosoftech (P) Ltd, Comprehensive IT Developers (P) Ltd, MD Web Designers (P) Ltd and M/s Challengerz Web Solutions (P) Ltd.

Nirmal Singh said: “We got farmhouses. But different directors got it, not the company 3C.”

Dharampal Satyapal Group: 6 plots

Plots allotted to Dharampal Satyapal Sons Pvt Ltd (promoters, directors, shareholders are Rajiv Kumar, Ravinder Kumar, Atul Jain, Raghav Gupta, Rita Kumar Gupta); Rajiv Kumar; Spiritual Infrastructure (P) Ltd (Rajiv Kumar and Sunita Gupta are listed promoters, directors and shareholders); Baba Global Ltd (promoters, directors and shareholders are Ravinder Kumar, Sunita Gupta, Raghav Kumar, M/s Dharampal Satyapal, Rajiv Kumar, while Raj Kumar Kakraini is its full-time director); DS Infra Projects P Ltd (Rajiv Kumar is shown as director/promoter/shareholder); Gatik Infratech Pvt Ltd ( Rajiv Kumar is shown as director/promoter/shareholder).

Brig (retd) Mahendra Kumar, who represented Rajiv Kumar in the interview for the plots, said being an employee, he could not say much.

Agarwals of Sainik Farms, New Delhi: 5 plots

Plots allotted to Titli Exports (P) Ltd, Kanha Propmart (P) Ltd, Symbiosis Textiles (P) Ltd, Great Value Buildwell (P) Ltd, Dreamland Exim Pvt Ltd. The addresses of the companies are that of the Agarwal residence at 58A/4 Sainik Farms, New Delhi. Promoters, directors and shareholders of these companies include Manoj Kumar Agarwal, Navratan Agarwal, Pragya Agarwal, Umesh Agarwal, Mayank Agarwal and Sachin Agarwal.

Mayank Agarwal said family members are shareholders/promoters and directors in the companies that have been allotted farmhouse plots. Manoj Agarwal said some of his companies had been given to relatives and friends.

Ponty Chadha’s Brilliant Builders (P) Ltd & Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers (P) Ltd: 3 plots

Two plots allotted to Brilliant Builders. Rajinder Singh Chadha and Javed Ahmed are its promoters and directors while Gurdeep Singh Chadha is listed as a shareholder. Another plot allotted to Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers whose promoters are Jatinder Kaur, wife of Gurdeep Singh Chadha, and Lalit Kapoor.

M S Mehra, PA to the Chadhas, said: “Yes, Brilliant Builders and Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers are Ponty Sir’s companies and have got farmhouse plots. But the family is not here to comment on the issue.”

Sunil Chopra & Group Companies: 3 plots

Plots allotted to Sunil Chopra (promoter of Windsor projects), Dyna Infosoft (P) Ltd and Apra Motels (P) Ltd.

Chopra said: “I have only one farmhouse plot in my name. Dyna belongs to my relatives which I bought later along with Apra Motels.”

Vacant plots become dumps across city

NEW DELHI: It is hard to say what this plot on Rani Jhansi Road was meant for, but for 10 years it has been used only as a garbage dump. Businessmen at the furniture market here say they have learnt to live with the stinking eyesore after years of futile complaints to civic agencies. “We complained to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi as well as the Delhi Development Authority, but they weren’t bothered,” said Kuldeep Singh, chief of Rani Jhansi Road traders’ welfare association. It’s the same story at many vacant plots across the city. Plots left undeveloped by owners are used to dump waste, and end up as magnets for stray dogs, cows and worse.

While the civic bodies washed their hands off the matter saying that these plots belong to DDA, DDA officials said the plots used as dumps had ceased to be their responsibility once they were sold “Mosquitoes and flies breed in the unattended garbage. The stench becomes unbearable each time it rains. No civic agency is ready to take responsibility even as diseases like dengue and chikungunya are spreading,” said Ajit Singhal, a shopkeeper in the Laxmi Nagar market, where there are two such plots.Municipal corporation officials shrug off the responsibility, saying most of these plots belong to DDA. “Sanitation is our responsibility, but we cannot go and clean properties that are not with us. We clean roads and other public utilities, but these are private properties so how can we clean them?” said a corporation official of North Delhi Municipal Corporation.

DDA officials said the plots used as dumps had ceased to be their responsibility when they were sold. Delhi Pollution Control Committee, the third agency that could possibly take action for burning garbage and dried leaves, says that it will look into the matter. “We have written to all agencies, telling them that open burning of garbage is not permitted, but it appears that private persons have been dumping the garbage and then setting it on fire. We will see what can be done,” said an official.

No interest to be charged till approval of Master Plan

Greater Noida: In good news for flat buyers in Noida extension, no interest will be charged from builders by Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) from October 21, 2011 till approval of Master Plan by NCR Planning Board.

Builders have said if authority gives relief to them they will pass the benefit to buyers.

GNIDA has given approval to treat the period between the Allahabad High Court order of October 21,2011 till the approval of master plan by National Capital Region Planning Board as zero period, officials said, adding no interest on this period would be charged by authority from the builders.

Noida Extension Flats Owners Members Association representatives said it was their prime demand and now builders should honestly pass the relief to them. They said the builders should also not demand instalments penalty interest.

Moreover, builders should declare a moratorium on payment of instalments till the NCRPB approval is granted so as to provide relief to Noida extension buyers.

Over a lakh buyers have been affected by the farmers agitation over land acquisition, court judgements and non-approval of master plan by NCRPB.

The Allahabad High Court had directed the Authority on October 21, 2011 to get the Master Plan approved by the NCRPB. 

PTI 

                             PROPER USE OF PUBLIC PROPERTY

Public properties are what people of a country own and use it jointly. For example, we walk on road, use electricity, public parks and grounds, hospital, libraries, government offices, etc. These are all built with public money that is from the taxes we pay. And the government is responsible for maintaining this property. But it does not mean that people have no role to play in this regard.

If the government is responsible for building and maintaining public property, it is the duty of people to help the government in maintaining it. It costs a lot of money to uild or buys these things and our country is not so rich. Duty increases a little bit more. If we, the people the country do not use these public amenities properly or we destroy them, it will not be easy to replace them, been seen that people use water and electricity lastly, they cause accidents by removing parts of railway and steal or damage bulbs and fans, from railway compartments.

 They do not use railway toilet properly. They throw garbage on the road and spit on it while walking. Other people have to suffer because of this antisocial behaviour. Sometimes electric, telephone and telegraph lines are cut and stolen. As a result everyone suffers as communication gets disrupted. It has also been seen that telephone booths, postoffices and letter-boxes are damaged. Benches are stolen from the parks and water sources contanimated, causing numerous problems to others.

Now we will see why people destroy, or steal public property or why they use it carelessly most of the time it has been seen that people destroy it to express their anger and frustration. When people are angry about something they organize a protest, they burn and destroy something. They burn and destory public buildings and buses and stop trains. This causes many problems for other people. As they cannot reach their offices, factories or schools in time, many valuable working hours are lost. This causes great loss to the country.

We know India is a developing country and whenever such things occur, they slow down its progress. Hence, it is foolish to destroy public property because one is harming oneself as well as the progress of the country. We must know, we have no right to destroy it or use it recklessly or steal it. It (public property) is something we own collectively and use jointly. If we have any grievances or any legitimate demands, we can approach the authorities peacefully. Destruction of public property is no solution of any problem. It only creates more of it.

As good citizens it is our duty to use the public property as carefully as we use our own things. Its misuse causes inconvenience to everybody, including ourselves. We must develop a sense of cooperation in having a comfortable and happy civic life. We all must work together, contribute funds by paying taxes on time and have a sense of responsibility to preserve conveniences which exist for the benefit of all.

     

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