GHAZIABAD: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has released a comprehensive 446-page audit report on the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA), identifying significant operational deficiencies from 2017 to 2022. These include planning violations, inadequate enforcement, and shortcomings in housing and financial management.
One notable finding pertains to the Master Plan 2021. The CAG highlighted that the GDA “implemented Master Plan 2021 without obtaining approval from the NCR Planning Board,” which is meant to oversee regional planning.
The audit raised concerns about the preparation and adherence to the plan, noting that instead of a unified document, GDA produced separate plans for Ghaziabad and Modinagar, while also flagging numerous zoning regulation violations.
The report indicated it took the authority four years to complete the Ghaziabad plan and a decade for Modinagar. Additionally, the expensive Hindon elevated road project, costing ₹1,089 crore, “was not included in Master Plan 2021,” and the prescribed land-use regulations were ignored.
In terms of outcomes, the report exposed discrepancies between promises made in the plan and actual results. While 2,484 hectares were slated for parks and open spaces, only 511 hectares were achieved. Similarly, residential land originally designated as 6,975 hectares amounted to just 5,481 hectares in reality.
The CAG also pointed out the GDA’s underperformance in constructing affordable housing units for the economically weaker sections (EWS). From 2017 to 2022, they aimed for 25,000 EWS units but only completed 9,960, which is about 40% of the goal. Furthermore, the authority created only 18.3 hectares of land banks for the expected 300 hectares needed for industrial and residential uses.
On the enforcement front, the report criticized GDA for failing to safeguard the Hindon floodplains, despite government directives to maintain the area as a green belt. It highlighted how illegal colonies proliferated in the floodplains, with “minimal action taken by GDA to clear encroachments within 200 meters on both sides of the river.” Google images from 2009 to 2023 were included to demonstrate the extent of uncontrolled construction.
Financial management also faced stern criticism, with the auditor noting that GDA failed to meet projected revenue in all surveyed years except FY 2018-19, with shortfalls ranging from 48% to 58%. The GDA did not utilize an auto-sweep banking feature for surplus funds, resulting in a loss of ₹73 lakh.
The audit further highlighted inefficiencies in debt recovery, with unrecovered dues totaling ₹64 crore as of March 2022. It also brought to light a long-standing inter-authority loan, where GDA had lent ₹50 crore to the Hapur-Pilkhuwa Development Authority in 2007 at a 9% interest rate, yet only ₹41 crore has been repaid after 14 years.
In response to these findings, a GDA official remarked, “The report has been submitted to the UP assembly. The state government will review it. As for GDA, we assure that we will implement the recommendations in the CAG report.”
