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India’s 28 Builders Sell Properties Worth ₹53,000 Cr (Apr-Jun)

NEW DELHI: In the April-June quarter, India’s 28 publicly listed real estate companies collectively sold properties valued at approximately Rs 53,000 crore, with Prestige Estates recording the highest sales. According to regulatory filings, the total sales bookings for these firms amounted to Rs 52,842 crore for the first quarter of the financial year. Bengaluru’s Prestige Estates Projects Ltd led the sector with pre-sales reaching Rs 12,126.4 crore during this period. DLF Ltd, recognized as the largest real estate firm by market capitalization in India, secured the second spot with pre-sales of Rs 11,425 crore, mainly due to demand in the…

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Taxman could gain greater power to target benami properties

Representative Image MUMBAI: Efforts to strengthen the law against benami transactions are underway. These transactions often see faceless individuals, slum residents, and impoverished laborers in tribal areas holding properties worth crores for the actual owners who conceal their identities. A committee formed by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has put forth recommendations, including granting officials access to the Aadhaar database, state property registries, and the vehicle and driving license data. They also propose amending the law to allow the confiscation of other assets belonging to true beneficiaries if a benami asset remains untraceable. The committee, which submitted its…

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Mysuru’s Online Auction of Upscale Sites Draws High Bids

MYSURU: An online auction of stray MDA sites in Mysuru’s upscale neighborhoods has revealed astonishing bids. The top bid for a 745 sqft corner plot in the affluent Vijayanagar IV stage reached Rs 2 crore, significantly above the base price of Rs 59.6 lakh. Another site, spanning 4,133 sqft, garnered a bid of Rs 9 crore compared to its starting price of Rs 3.3 crore. Both properties had a base price set around Rs 8,000 per sqft, using market rates and previous sales as benchmarks. Bids for these properties have surged, often reaching two to three times the original base…

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Opposition Grows to Proposed Building Rules in Punjab

BATHINDA: Several pro-environment organizations and activists have voiced strong objections to the proposed Punjab Unified Building Rules, 2025, likening them to a land-pooling policy. They contend that the draft favors builders over the general public by granting developers extensive powers. These organizations argue that Punjab’s residents are opposed to congested, unsafe, and unlivable urban areas. They express concerns that provisions for unlimited floor area ratio (FAR), increased population densities, habitable basements, commercializing residential spaces, relaxed fire safety standards, and loss of green areas will lead to concrete jungles. They believe that the proposed rules prioritize developer profits at the expense…

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MHA Urges Chandigarh Admin for Response on Property Issues

CHANDIGARH: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has once again reached out to the Chandigarh administration regarding unresolved property issues, following a lack of response. In its recent communication, the MHA referenced a letter from Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari, highlighting five critical matters concerning the administration. The MHA’s letter states, “The requisite information is still awaited. Therefore, we kindly request your comments on the following major issues facing the Chandigarh administration.” The Times of India was the first to report on this communication. The ministry is seeking updates and views on several “major issues.” The identified issues include: property sale…

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BMC to Launch Safety Licenses for High-Rise Site Officers

Representative image created by AI MUMBAI: The BMC’s building proposal department should implement a professional safety license for Licensed Safety Officers (LSOs) for each high-rise development in the city. The special safety control guidelines recommended by a committee, as directed by the Bombay High Court, were approved by the state government and sent to the BMC on August 20. In 2022 and 2023, there were incidents involving tower cranes that affected pedestrians. On February 14, 2023, a tragedy occurred at a residential construction site where concrete blocks fell from the 42nd floor onto an adjacent road, resulting in the deaths…

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Pune Activists: Scrap Janata Vasahat TDR Proposal, Don’t Pause It

Here’s a rewritten version of your content: — PUNE: Following the state government’s decision to pause the contentious TDR (Transfer of Development Rights) proposal for the Janata Vasahat slum rehabilitation, activists and residents are calling for its complete cancellation. They allege significant irregularities in land classification, inflated valuations, and a transparency deficit that could jeopardize the rights of slum dwellers. The project, valued at Rs750 crore, involves allocating full TDR, representing 100% of the slum area at 1 Floor Space Index (FSI). However, parts of the Janata Vasahat slum are designated in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC)’s Development Plan as…

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PAC: Punjab Building Rules Inferior to Land Pooling

LUDHIANA: Members of a public action committee have voiced strong opposition to the draft Punjab Unified Building Rules 2025. They argue that the proposed regulations are even more detrimental than the land pooling scheme previously withdrawn by the state government due to public pressure, claiming it will exacerbate traffic congestion and other issues, undermining its intended purpose. The objections were presented by PAC (Mattewara) representatives—Jaskirat Singh, Kapil Arora, Kuldeep Singh Khaira, and Amandeep Bains—before the director of town and country planning on Thursday. The housing and urban development department had solicited public feedback on the Draft Punjab Unified Building Rules…

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Brigade Group Leases 9-Acre Plot on Chennai’s OMR

Representative image created by AI BENGALURU: Brigade Group, a prominent real estate developer, has secured a long-term lease for nine acres of land in Perungudi along the Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR) in Chennai from YMCA. This acquisition stands out as one of the most significant transactions in the city’s IT corridor in recent years. The site, leased for 55 years, is situated in a strategically important area where large land parcels are rare. It has the potential for development of approximately 1.6 million sq ft, according to an insider. Though financial specifics are not disclosed, experts estimate that land at…

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Gurugram RWAs demand GST cut on maintenance bills to 5%

GURUGRAM: Resident welfare associations (RWAs) have urged Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini that essential services like security, water supply, and sanitation should not be subjected to luxury taxes. They are calling for a rationalization of the GST applied on monthly maintenance fees. In their appeal, they have asked Saini, who also oversees finance, to reduce the GST rate from 18% to 5% and to raise the exemption limit from Rs 7,500 to Rs 10,000 per flat per month. This request arises in light of PM Modi’s announcement on Independence Day, which stated that the GST framework would be revamped into…