On February 25 of this year, the Noida Authority issued a one-time concession for industrial allottees who are having trouble fulfilling project deadlines after the adoption of the new unified policy.

A final extension is available to allottees whose deadlines for finishing construction and operationalizing their plots have already passed or are about to expire within a year. Larger plots are eligible for a two-year extension, whereas plots up to 20,000 square meters will only get a one-year extension. An extra price of 4% of the plot’s existing allocation rate for the first year and 6% for the second year will apply for this extension. For plots up to 20,000 square meters, the revised completion date is February 25, 2026; for bigger plots, it is February 25, 2027.

“The notice was issued around fifteen days ago, but so far, the reaction has been quite unsatisfactory. According to TOI reports, a top official said that factory owners and industrialists should come out and take advantage of the advantages.

Furthermore, as the Unified Policy allows paid extensions for a maximum of two years, an extension will be given in situations where this limit has already passed or is about to expire within a year. The charge will be determined using the rates that were in effect before February 25.

The new extension fee schedule, which is 4% for the first year and 6% for the second, will thereafter be in effect. An estimated 600 to 700 industrial units are anticipated to gain from this decision. There are over 11,000 registered industrial units in Noida overall.

Any change in a company’s shareholding must be reported to the Authority by allottees within ninety days, as per the present Unified Policy. A fine of Rs 500 per day is imposed for noncompliance; this provision was absent from the prior policy. The Authority has, however, suspended the Rs 500 daily penalty for existing allottees who fail to disclose changes in their shareholding (CIS) on time. Officials stressed that CIS compliance is still a requirement under the program, even with the waiver.

As a one-time relief, allottees who did not notify the Authority by February 25 of this year but updated their company’s list of directors or shareholders with the Registrar of Companies (ROC) would not be penalized. This exemption is only applicable if they turn in the necessary paperwork within ninety days of the day a particular order pertaining to this clause was issued.

“The injunction allows businesses till August 15 to comply since it was issued on May 16. Penalties under the unified policy will take effect after this date. This provision is expected to help around 1,500 businesses, according to an official.

The Noida Authority recognized the difficulties in handling project-related services and applications under the Unified Policy at its 217th Board meeting in March. The Board gave Noida CEO Lokesh M permission to discuss and resolve frequent requests from allottees on matters like transfer costs, CIS fees, time extensions, and late fines.

“When determining the one- or two-year extension period, the Authority shall consider the monsoon-related interruptions as well as the limits imposed under GRAP procedures. Practically speaking, businesses have only a few months to finish their initiatives. Instead than unduly burdening allottees, the emphasis should be on getting industrial units up and running. According to TOI sources, Sudhir Shrivastav, a spokesman for the Noida businesses Association (NEA), said that the Covid-19 outbreak and difficulties in obtaining property from the Authority prevented several businesses from finishing building.

“Such charges and penalties exist only in Uttar Pradesh,” he said in response to CIS-related allegations, according to TOI reports. They need to be outlawed entirely. Nonetheless, we applaud the decision to suspend the penalties for the next three months.