AHMEDABAD: Different departments within the Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (Auda) appear to be making significant decisions without proper communication. A notable instance of this miscommunication is a recent land deal.
One year after auctioning 21,685 sq m of prime land next to the SP Ring Road in Chandkheda for ₹166 crore, officials in the estate department discovered that their counterparts in the town planning department had already designated part of that land for a 9m wide service road.
In response to this oversight, Auda officials hurried to rectify the situation. During the board meeting on September 30, they proposed granting the Auda chairman authority to refund ₹12.7 crore to the developer. The board reportedly approved the proposal but expressed disappointment over the error.
The proposal explained that the 21,685 sq m plot at Final Plot No. 227 in Auda’s Chandkheda town planning scheme No. 44 was reserved for “commercial use,” with a price set at ₹76,000 per sq m on September 26, 2023. Subsequently, the board decided to auction this land on September 29.
The online auction took place on June 18, 2024, with the highest bid reaching ₹76,400 per sq m. Auda then issued a Letter of Intimation (LOI) to the company on July 11, 2024, instructing payment of ₹166 crore within the agreed timeframe, later extending this deadline by up to 180 days at the company’s request.
Additionally, a 15% annual interest was imposed on any outstanding payment, as outlined in the proposal. According to the document, payments were made gradually, extending beyond the initial 180-day limit.
Auda’s accounts department recommended recovering an additional ₹8 crore from the company in interest, leading to the plot’s allotment on March 12, 2025, once this amount was settled.
An Auda official, wishing to remain anonymous, stated, “This plot is situated between Zundal Circle and Tapovan Circle along the SP Ring Road. The road in this area is 60m wide, allowing for service lanes of either 12m or 9m width.”
The official noted that a 9m wide service lane had already been planned for the area, but it had mistakenly been included in the land sold to the developer.
“The estate department only became aware of this error during discussions with the town planning department regarding potential development on the land. The TP department’s records indicated a provision for a service road,” the official elaborated.
“The builder received a refund of ₹12.13 crore for the 1,589 sq m inadvertently sold, along with ₹58.43 lakh deducted from the interest for delayed payment, adjusting the final allotment to 20,096 sq m,” the official added.
**Not the First Incident: 12m Wide Road Sold to Lulu**
A year ago, the estate department sold a plot adjacent to the SP Ring Road in Chandkheda to Lulu International Shopping Malls Pvt Ltd for ₹149.73 crore. When the company took possession, it was discovered that a 12m wide road and a water feeder pipeline had been planned, hindering construction. Auda’s board recently approved a ₹23.60 crore refund to the company, equivalent to the area allocated for the road.
