Srushti Vaidya | October 21, 2022
Purvankara earned about Rs.10 crore from sale of car parks, the cost of which was already included in the property price
Real estate developers in Chennai are allegedly violating Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) norms for car parking spaces. Tamil Nadu Real Estate Regulatory Authority (TNRERA) has found atleast two cases where car parking norms were violated.
Bengaluru-based Puravankara Ltd. earned Rs 10 crore from sale of car parks the cost of which was already included in the property price according to documents accessed by The Bottomline. Puravankara is the sixth biggest real estate developer in India in terms of sales with 74 projects in India and a few projects overseas.
Puravankara sold 1731 car parks for Rs.60,000 each to residents of Provident Cosmo City in Chennai for Rs.10.38 crore. As per the CMDA norms, it is compulsory for builders to provide free car parks for a house with floor area above 75sq.m. Provident Cosmo City’s apartments have three floor sizes – 78 sq.m, 91sq.m and 98sq.m for 2BHK and 3BHK flats respectively.
Puravankara had received CMDA approval for constructing 1487 car parks but sold 1731 car parks and later changed its original plan to construct more parking spaces according to a complaint filed by Cosmo City residents association with TNRERA. “While getting approval, in the drawings they have a perfect plan, but while building it physically, they alter measurements,” said an official with knowledge of the case.
Puravankara could only build 1107 car parks and to accommodate the rest it altered the width of a 9m drive way to 7.2m and a 7.2m drive way to 3.5m.
Casagrand, one of Chennai’s biggest builders with 112 projects across Chennai, Coimbatore and Bengaluru is also charged with such a deviation.
Casagrand’s Bellissimo project in Alandur, Chennai received approval from CMDA for 345 car parks and 87 two-wheeler parking spaces. However, Casagrand altered its original plan and created 507 car parks and no provision for two-wheeler parking spaces, according to complaints filed by residents of Bellissimo with TNRERA. The builder adjusted extra parking spaces by reducing the original size of the stall areas and encroaching the common areas. Many covered parallel parking spaces with columns don’t have the minimum width of 2.7m, the complaint said.
E-mails and phone calls to Puravankara and Casagrand remained unanswered till press time.
Earning money from unlawfully selling car parks has become a common practice for many real estate builders, said the official “TNRERA has around 25 ongoing cases about builders making easy money from car parkings,” said another official familiar with the matter. Amarprakash Developers and Dugar Homes are also involved in the practise, the official said.
Puravankara and Casagrand’s dispute is yet to be resolved. There is no fixed provision for penalising real estate builders who gain from illegal car parking sales. TNRERA will either make builders construct the missing parks or compensate residents for the amount they paid that motivates builders to continue violating norms.