CHENNAI: The State government is slowly filling vacancies in the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) by appointing retired officials of the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority in those positions, many of whom were under the scanner of the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC), sparking protest from builders, a High Court appointed panel member as well as planners.
Although corruption charges against them have been dropped, builders and developers are cautious over a fresh stint of them, since many of them were instrumental in weakening development regulations.
Former national president of the Builders’ Association of India R Radhakrishnan opposed the move. “It is a new system and a new law to benefit the system. It will soon become another conduit for corruption,” said Radhakrishan. There is no transparency in the appointments for the statutory body, which also controls the Union territory of Andamans, he rued.
M G Deivasahayam, a member of the Madras High Court-appointed CMDA Monitoring Committee, said that appointing of retired CMDA officials as RERA office-bearers is like having a ‘Regulatory Catcher’. “This is like an organisation that needs to be regulated but ends up capturing the regulator,” he quipped.
Deivasahayam said such a regulatory body would be a burden on the tax-payer. “The office-bearers of RERA should be totally independent professionals and not related to the urban development department,” he added.
A developer on condition of anonymity said the appointments are like a thief guarding the property. Other developers had a different take though. Since CMDA officials are knowledgeable about RERA, their appointment would add value to their new positions, they contended.
The Association of Professional Town Planners president K M Sadanandh harped on transparency. “They should infuse fresh blood and not retired officials who have a fixed mindset,” he added. Sadanandh said that CMDA’s role ends after issuing a completion certificate. “The RERA’s role is to monitor the builder and address buyers’ grievances, for which we require persons with technical, legal and economics background. It is not that only CMDA has technical persons,” he added.