Pune: In a significant move, the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) has issued warnings of potential suspension for 546 projects that failed to update mandatory quarterly progress reports by the end of last year. Officials revealed that these projects, registered in the first quarter of the previous year, now face the risk of registration suspension until compliance is met.
Of the 1,886 projects registered in the first three months of the previous year, 29% (546 projects) failed to provide the required quarterly updates by December-end. MahaRERA officials stated that a stringent monitoring process is in place, with close scrutiny of project reports on a month-to-month basis.
Bank accounts of these projects that have not adhered to the quarterly reporting guidelines have been frozen by the authority. The regulator is expected to reinstate the registration only after developers pay penalties and fulfill the mandatory reporting requirements, officials added.
In January last year, a mere 0.02% of the registered projects submitted their quarterly updates, with only two out of 746 projects complying. Subsequent months showed marginal improvements, with around 19% of February’s 700 projects and approximately 34% of March’s 440 projects submitting timely reports. The deadline for these reports was April 20.
While the response improved slightly in April, with 46.25% of 480 projects filing their updates within the stipulated time, MahaRERA emphasizes its goal of achieving a 100% response rate from developers.
Ajoy Mehta, Chairman of MahaRERA, stated, “As per regulatory provisions, quarterly progress reports of housing projects must be mandatorily submitted to MahaRERA and updated on the website. The 46.25% response in April last year is certainly comforting, but MahaRERA is aiming for 100% response.”
The authority has disclosed Quarterly Progress Reports (QPR) until April of the previous year, with plans to release reports for the remaining year subsequently. These reports play a crucial role in keeping homebuyers informed about project progress, including the number of units sold, funds collected, and alignment of expenses with physical project progress.
Activist and advocate Godfrey Pimenta of the Watchdog Foundation emphasized the importance of timely information updates, suggesting that MahaRERA should actively monitor and demand explanations for any delays in reporting, especially for significant projects, to better serve the interests of homebuyers.
