a3ette Rothata 7174:1714%,444 Extraordinary Published by Authority Regd. No. WB/SC-247 No. WB/CPS/Raj-7(Part 111)/2003 SRAVANA 8] WEDNESDAY, JULY 30, 2003 [SAKA 1925
PART III—Acts of the West Bengal Legislature. GOVERNMENT OF WEST BENGAL LAW DEPARTMENT Legislative NO I ll-ICATION No.1251-L.-30th July, 2003. —The following Act of the West Bengal Legislature, having been assented to by the President of India is hereby published for general information:— West Bengal Act XXXV of 2002 THE WEST BENGAL BUILDING (REGULATION OF PROMOTION OF CONSTRUCTION AND TRANSFER BY PROMOTERS) (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2002. [Passed by the West Bengal Legislature.] Short title, extent and commencement. Amendment of section 2 of West Ben. Act XX of
1993. [Assent of the President of India was first published in the Kolkata Gazette, Extraordinary, of the 30th July, 2003.] An Act to amend the West Bengal Building (Regulation of Promotion of Construction and Transfer by Promoters) Act, 1993. WHEREAS it is expedient to amend the West Bengal Building (Regulation of Promotion of Construction and Transfer by Promoters) Act, 1993, for the purposes and in the manner hereinafter appearing; It is hereby enacted in the Fifty-third Year of the Republic of India, by the Legislature of West Bengal, as follows:-
1. (1) This Act may be called the West Bengal Building (Regulation of Promotion of Construction and Transfer by Promoters) (Amendment) Act, 2002.
(2) It extends to the whole of West Bengal.
(3) It shall come into force in such area or areas, and on such date or dates, as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint; and different dates may be appointed for different areas.
2. In the West Bengal Building (Regulation of Promotion of Construction and Transfer by Promoters) Act, 1993 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), in section 2,—
(a) after clause (d), the following clause shall be inserted:— "(dd) 'Family', in relation to a person, means the individual, the wife or husband, as the case maybe, of such individual, his parents, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters;";
(b) in clause (g), the following proviso shall be inserted:— "Provided that notwithstanding anything contained elsewhere in this Act or in any other law for the time being in force, a person shall be deemed to be a promoter if he constructs or causes to be constructed, a building with a height of 9.5 metre or more and on West Ben. Act XX of 1993. 17 18] THE KOLKATA GAZETTE EXTRAORDINARY, JULY 30, 2003 [PART 111 The West Bengal Building (Regulation of Promotion of Construction and Transfer by Promoters) (Amendment) Act, 2002. (Sections 3,4.) a plot of land measuring three hundred square metres or above or if he constructs or causes to be constructed a building consisting of flats in excess of the requirements of the members of his family,";
(c) for clause (j), the following clause shall be substituted:— `(j) the expression "to construct a building" with its grammatical variation means
(i) to construct a new building, or
(ii) to re-construct a building, or
(iii) to convert a building, or any part of a building, not being a flat or block, into a flat or block, in accordance with the provisions of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation Act, 1980, or the Howrah Municipal Corporation Act, 1980, or the Siliguri Municipal Corporation Act, 1990, or the Asansol Municipal Corporation Act, 1990, or the Chandernagore Municipal Corporation Act, 1990, or the Durgapur Municipal Corporation Act, 1994, or the West Bengal Municipal Act, 1993, or the West Bengal Panchayat Act, 1973, or the West Bengal Town and Country (Planning and Development) Act, 1979, as the case may be, and the rules made thereunder.'.
3. In section 3 of the principal Act,—
(a) in sub-section (1), in the proviso,—
(i) for the words "such officer of the State Government, not below the rank of Executive Engineer, as the State Government may appoint," the words "such officer not below the rank of Assistant Engineer, specially authorised by the State Government," shall be substituted,
(ii) after the words "shall have access to the site of such building", the words "and have power to enter upon or take ingress to any flat of the building" shall be inserted;
(b) in sub-section (2),—
(i) in clause (b), the word "promoter's" shall be omitted,
(ii) in clause (c), the word "registered" shall be omitted;
(c) in sub-section (3),—
(i) the first proviso shall be omitted,
(ii) in the second proviso, for the words "Provided further that", the words "Provided that" shall be substituted;
(d) in sub-section (5), in the second proviso, after the words, figure and brackets, "every application under sub-section (1)", the words, figure and brackets "accompanied by all relevant documents and particulars, referred to in sub-section (2)," shall be inserted.
4. After section 3 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted:— "Stopping 3A. (1) The authorised officer, if he is satisfied that a building construction, or demolition is being constructed in violation of any provision of this Act, may ' of nauthorised direct the concerned local body or the District Magistrate or the u building. Commissioner of Police or the Chief Engineer, Housing Directorate or any other authority as may be prescribed, without prejudice to any other law for the time being in force, to stop construction of such building or to demolish such building after giving the promoter a notice and an opportunity of being heard in the manner as may be prescribed.
(2) The cost of demolition of such building shall be realised from the concerned promoter under the provisions of the Bengal Public Demands Recovery Act, 1913.". Amendment of section 3. Insertion of new section 3A. West Ben. Act LIX of 1980. West Ben. Act LVIII of 1980. West Ben. Act XXX of 1990. West Ben. Act XXXI of 1990. West Ben. Act XXXII of 1990. West Ben. Act LIII of 1994. West Ben. Act XXII of 1993. West Ben. Act XLI of 1973. West Ben. Act XIII of 1979. Ben. Act III of
1913. ART III] THE KOLKATA GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, JULY 30, 2003 [19 The West Bengal Building (Regulation of Promotion of Construction and Transfer by Promoters) (Amendment) Act, 2002. (Sections 5-8.) mendment of action 4. asertion of new ection 4A. Amendment of section 7. Amendment of section 8.
5. In section 4 of the principal Act,—
(a) for sub-section (1), the following sub-section shall be substituted:— "(1) The certificate of registration granted to a promoter under section 3 shall, subject to the provisions of sub-section (2) of this section, remain valid for a period of ten years from the date of issue of such certificate:
Provided that the authorised officer may, from time to time, renew the certificate of registration for a period not exceeding five years at a time:
Provided further that the application for renewal of the certificate of registration shall be in such form, and shall be accompanied by such fee, as may be prescribed.";
(b) in sub-section (2),—
(i) for clause (c), the following clause shall be substituted:— "(c) the promoter, in course of construction of any building, uses substandard materials or violates any rule or established practices regulating the construction of building; or
(ii) after clause (c), the following clause shall be inserted :— "(d) the promoter has been convicted by the competent court of law for violation of any provision of this Act".
6. After section 4 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted:— "Period of validitY 4A. The permission for the construction of a building granted to a ofperrnission for promoter under section 3, shall remain valid for a period of five years construction of a building. from the date of grant of such permission:
Provided that the authorised officer on an application by the promoter may, extend the period of validity of the permission for construction of building, howsoever that the total period of such extension shall not exceed two years :
Provided further that, if the promoter cannot complete the construction of such building within the total period of seven years for the circumstances beyond his control, he may make an application to the State Government for extending period of validity of permission for construction of such building, and the State Government may, on receipt of such application, extend the said period of seven years by such further period as it thinks fit.".
7. In section 7 of the principal Act,—
(a) for the words "which shall not be more than forty per cent. of the sale price of a flat,", the words "as may be prescribed," shall be substituted,
(b) the words and figures "and the agreement shall be registered under the Registration Act, 1908," shall be omitted,
(c) the proviso shall be omitted.
8. In section 8 of the principal Act,—
(a) in sub-section (3), for the words "the matter shall, on payment of such fee by the purchaser in such manner as may be prescribed, be referred for a decision to the Chief Engineer in the Housing Directorate under the Housing Department of the State Government, not below the rank of Executive Engineer, as the State Government may appoint within a period of two years from the date of taking possession of the building", the words "notwithstanding anything contained in any other Act, the matter shall, on payment of such fee by the purchaser in such manner as may be prescribed, be referred forthwith for an enquiry, to the Chief Engineer in the Housing Directorate under the Housing Department of the State Government or to such other officer of the State Government not below the rank of Executive Engineer, as the State Government may appoint or to the concerned local body or to any other experts as may be prescribed, who, after necessary investigation into the matter, shall submit a report with specific views to the authorised officer within a period of six months from the date of payment of the fee referred to above and the authorised officer shall, on the basis of the enquiry reports received from any of the authorities as aforesaid, dispose of such dispute within three months thereafter: 16 of 1908. 20] THE KOLKATA GAZETTE EXTRAORDINARY, JULY 30, 2003 [PART HI The West Bengal Building (Regulation of Promotion of Construction and Transfer by Promoters) (Amendment) Act, 2002. (Sections 9,10.)
Provided that such dispute is to be brought to the notice of the authorised officer within a period of two years from the date of taking possession of the building, and the decision of the authorised officer thereof shall be final" shall be substituted;
(b) sub-section (4) shall be omitted;
(c) for sub-section (5), the following sub-section shall be substituted:— "(5) The Chief Engineer or the officer appointed under sub- section (3) or the local body or the experts, as the case may be, entrusted for enquiry into the disputes referred to in sub-section (3), shall have access to the site of any building under construction by any promoter, whose name has been registered under sub-section (5) of section 3, at any time of the day without prior intimation to him for inspection of the work of construction or for investigation of any complaint from any purchaser or other person or from any other source with regard to unlawful or defective construction or use of sub-standard materials, as may be referred to him by the authorised officer".
9. In section 9 of the principal Act,—
(a) after sub-section (1), the following sub-section shall be inserted:— "(la) A promoter who has already created a charge on the land and on the flat proposed to be constructed on such land by injecting Bank finance or fmance from other sources, shall deliver possession of such flat with right, title and interest free from all encumbrances, on full and final settlement of the consideration money by such purchaser.";
(b) in sub-section (2),—
(i) after the words "be liable on demand to refund", the words "within a period of three months" shall be inserted;
(ii) in the proviso,— (A) in clause (a), for the words "at the rate of twelve per cent. of the advance payment or deposit to the party for the period commencing from the date following the date of expiry of the specified period to the date of giving possession of the flat, and such compensation shall be adjusted against the price of the flat", the words "which shall be adjusted against the price of the flat as such rate and", shall be substituted, (B) in clause (b), for the words "at the rate of twenty-five per cent. of such advance payment or deposit", the words "at the rate as may be prescribed, or" shall be substituted, (C) after clause (b), the following clause shall be inserted:— "(c) after completion of construction within the specified date, if any party is unable to pay consideration money to the promoter and does not take possession of the flat within a period of three months from the date of obtaining completion certificate from the authority who sanctioned the building plan, the promoter may demand compensation at such rate as may be prescribed.".
10. For section 10 of the principal Act, the following section shall be substituted:— "Promoter to take 10. After obtaining occupancy certificate for the building and within steps for formation of two months after a minimum number of persons, required to form an apartment owners' association or co- apartment owners' association under the West Bengal Apartment operative society. Ownership Act, 1972, or a co-operative society under the West Bengal Co-operative Societies Act, 1983, have taken flats, the promoter shall take steps for the formation of an association of apartment owners or co-operative society, as the case may be, and the promoter shall join as member in respect of the flat or flats which has or have not been taken. Nothing in this section shall affect the right of the promoter to dispose of the remaining flats in accordance with the provisions of this Act". Amendment of section 9. Substitution of new section for section 10. West Ben. Act XVI of 1972. West Ben. Act XLV of 1983.
PART III] THE KOLKATA GAZETTE, EXTRAORDINARY, JULY 30, 2003 [21 The West Bengal Building (Regulation of Promotion of Construction and Transfer by Promoters) (Amendment) Act, 2002. (Sections 11-14.) Amendment of section 11. Amendment of section 12. Omission of section 13. Insertion of new sections 13A and 13 B.
11. In section 11 of the principal Act,—
(a) after the word "promoter", the words "as well as the owner of the land" shall be inserted;
(b) after the words "which is registered as a co-operative society", the words "or an apartment owners' association, as the case may be," shall be inserted.
12. In section 12 of the principal Act,—
(a) in sub-section (3), for the words "risks shall cover for a period of not less than five years from the date of making over of possession of the last saleable flat.", the words "shall cover risks for a period of not less than five years from the date of receipt of completion certificate from the authority who sanctioned the building plan." shall be substituted;
(b) after sub-section (5), the following sub-section shall be inserted:— "(6) In the event of death of the insured promoter or wind up of the promoting company or in case of non-availability of promoter(s), the registered co-operative society or the apartment owners' association, formed by, and for, the benefit of the owners of the concerned buildings, may act on behalf of the insured promoter with the permission of the authorised officer for recovery of claim in case of any death or loss caused by any defect in land or building.".
13. Section 13 of the principal Act shall be omitted.
14. After section 13 of the principal Act, the following sections shall be inserted:- -Offences. 13A. (1) Any offence committed by a promoter by violation of the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 3, section 7, sub-sections (1) and (2) of section 8, section 9, and section 11, of this Act shall be cognizable and non-bailable offence.
(2) Any offence committed by a promoter by violation of the provisions under section 10, and section 12, of this Act shall be non-cognizable and bailable offence. Penalties 13B. (1) Any promoter who fails to comply with the provisions under subsection (1) of section 3 of this Act or the rules made thereunder, shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term not being less than six months which may extend to five years or with fine which may extend to fifty thousand rupees or with both:
Provided that the court may, for reasons to be recorded in the judgement, impose a fine exceeding fifty thousand rupees.
(2) Any promoter who fails to comply with, or contravenes, the provisions of section 7, sub-sections (1) and (2) of section 8, section 9, or section 11, of this Act, or the rules made thereunder, shall on conviction, be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term, not being less than three months which may extend to four years or with fine which may extend to twenty-five thousand rupees or with both:
Provided that the court may, for reasons to be recorded in the judgement, impose a fine exceeding twenty-five thousand rupees.
(3) Any promoter who fails to comply with, or contravenes, the provisions of section 10 or section 12 of this Act or the rules made thereunder, shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term, not being less than three months, which may extend to three years or with fine which may extend to ten thousand rupees or with both.
(4) Any person who violates the provisions of any other section of this Act shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term, not being less than one month, which may extend to two years, or with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees or with both.". 22] THE KOLKATA GAZETTE EXTRAORDINARY, JULY 30, 2003 [PART III The West Bengal Building (Regulation of Promotion of Construction and Transfer by Promoters) (Amendment) Act, 2002. (Section 15.) Amendment of section 16.
15. In section 16 of the principal Act,—
(a) after the words "by a general or special order," the words "any person or" shall be inserted;
(b) for the words "as it may deem fit to impose", the words "as may be prescribed" shall be substituted. By order of the Governor, A. K. BHATTACHARYA, Principal Secy. to the Govt. of West Bengal & Secy., Law Department. Published by the Controller of Printing & Stationery. West Bengal and Printed by Asstt. Supdt. at "Secretary to the Governor's Press, Raj Bhavan, Kolkata" Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6