NEW DELHI: The Centre on Wednesday said it will advise state governments and Union Territories to treat the Covid-19 pandemic as an event of Force Majeure (Act of God), and extend the timelines of projects under RERA (Real Estate Regulatory Authority) by six months.
“States and UTs will be advised to extend the registration and completion date suo moto by six months for all registered projects expiring on or after March 25, 2020, without individual applications... Regulatory authorities may extend this for another period of up to three months,” the finance minister said.
Force Majeure is an event or effect that can be neither anticipated nor controlled. It refers to a clause included in contracts to remove liability for natural and unavoidable catastrophes.
The announcement on the six-month extension of timelines, along with the stimulus package to NBFCs and HFCs, was widely welcomed by the sector. “We are hopeful that the extension of RERA completion timelines for all projects is an important announcement for the developer’s fraternity in coping up with backlogged work due to natural disaster delays,” said Avneesh Sood, director, Eros Group.