CHANDIGARH: The Punjab Cabinet has approved amendments to the state’s land pooling policy to provide enhanced benefits to landowners.
During a meeting on Wednesday evening, the cabinet also agreed to waive facilitation charges for essential services such as birth and caste certificates in light of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema addressed the media on Thursday, announcing that landowners will now receive a commercial plot of 210 square yards for every acre of land contributed under the pooling policy, up from 200 square yards.
As per the current policy, landowners are entitled to 1,000 square yards of residential plots and 200 square yards of commercial plots for each acre of agricultural land.
The amendment further states that landowners opting out of the 200 square yard commercial plot will receive a 1,630 square yard residential plot, an increase from the previous 1,600 square yards, according to Cheema.
Additionally, the entitlement for commercial-category projects has increased from 800 square yards to 840 square yards per acre.
The cabinet has introduced a special Letter of Intent provision for small farmers and extended the validity of the ‘Sahuliyat Certificate’ from two to four years.
Moreover, original landowners who are allocated developed plots under this policy will be exempt from paying stamp duty or other charges during registration or execution of the conveyance deed. They may also benefit from a stamp duty exemption when purchasing land in Punjab, based on the collector rate of the acquired land, as stated in an official release.
In another announcement, Cheema noted that citizens require various documents, including birth and caste certificates, for the ongoing SIR exercise.
The cabinet has decided to waive facilitation charges for applying for these documents from July 1 to September 30, ensuring that citizens do not face financial burdens when obtaining the necessary paperwork for the SIR process.
This waiver encompasses essential services such as issuing caste certificates, residence certificates, birth certificates, duplicate Class X and Class XII certificates, among others.
Furthermore, Cheema revealed that the cabinet has approved the regularisation of illegal colonies where at least 25% construction has taken place.
Amendments to Rule 31 of the Punjab Apartment and Property Regulation Rules have been approved to ease the regularisation process for eligible unauthorised colonies across the state, allowing for regularisation in cases where 25% of plots have been built upon.
A compounding fee of 5% of the prevailing collector rate on the total area will be required for regularising residential and industrial colonies; for commercial colonies, this fee will be 10%. If applications are submitted by Resident Welfare Associations (RWA), the provisions of RERA will not apply. However, the promoter or RWA must obtain all necessary approvals and No Objection Certificates from the respective authorities and complete pending development works within the stipulated timeframe.
