A day after Gurugram-based developer Chintels India Private Ltd offered residents of Chintels Paradiso two options that include a buyback option or redevelopment of flats, the RWA sought a meeting with the Deputy Commissioner of Gurugram for their demands.
On February 10, 2022, two women were killed after the ceilings of several flats in tower D of Chintels Paradiso collapsed. Since tower D residents have been living on rent and occupants of towers E and F were also directed to evacuate their flats as these towers were declared “structurally unsafe” by IIT Delhi in February 2023.
Residents' concerns
The residents of towers E and F have been living under constant threat and have not evacuated despite repeated orders in the last two months. The district administration had earlier ordered the developer to evacuate the occupants of these towers and pay them rent at a rate of Rs 15 per square foot.
Also Read: One year of Chintels roof collapse in Gurugram: An uncertain future awaits residents
Rakesh Hooda, President of the Residents Welfare Association (RWA) of the society, said the RWA would like the DC to decide in consultation with homeowners, who are the impacted parties.
He said that most of the residents want reconstruction of their flats at the same site with the same facilities but the builder should not discontinue the rent.
He said that the builder is asking for Rs 1,000 per sq ft if residents chose to opt for the reconstruction of flats, which is not fair.
“In the meeting with the deputy commissioner, we will raise our demand that the entire cost of reconstruction of flats should be borne by the builder and residents should not be asked to give any amount in lieu of reconstructed flats. We will also request the DC to direct the developer not to discontinue the rent being given to affected families. Rent should continue till reconstructed flats are given to us,” Hooda told Moneycontrol.
"For us, the priority is to protect the interests of homeowners, who have invested hard-earned money in these apartments and whose dreams have been shattered," Hooda said, adding that they have not yet got the appointment with the Gurugram DC.
The builder's proposal
Another resident of the society, Sumit, who goes by his first name, said the proposal given by the developer is not beneficial for the residents and scrapping the rent by the builders will certainly trouble them.
“At first the builder is offering buyback at a lower rate and then the developer is also asking residents to pay Rs 1,000 per sq ft if they chose for reconstruction of flats. This is unfair as first the builder constructed poor quality flats and now they want us to pay for their mistake and above all the builder is also not willing to pay rent to families living in alternate accommodations. The authorities should intervene in this matter,” he said.
In its letter to the DC, Gurugram, Chintels India said it has offered two settlement options to towers D, E, and F flat owners. In option one, the builder has offered to pay an all-inclusive price of Rs 6,500 psf (super built-up area) along with a refund of stamp duty paid by the flat owners.
In option two, the developer said that they are willing to get the property repaired or re-built by some reputed contractor, as per the technical requirements recommended by CSIR-CBRI, and hand over possession within 36 months from the date of receipt of all necessary approvals and removal of any other hurdles in going ahead with the construction.
Furthermore, considering the exponential increase in the prices of building materials and labour, the developer said it will charge a nominal amount of Rs 1,000 psf (super built-up area), which shall be charged in easy instalments.
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