The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has decided to take back two plots in Motera and Ognaj that were allotted to the Uttar Gujarat Vij Company Limited (UGVCL) after the utility failed to pay for the land or complete the required process for taking possession for more than two years.
The decision was approved by the AMC Standing Committee after the civic body’s estate department reported that UGVCL had not acted on the allotment despite repeated communications. The plots had been sought in 2023 for constructing sub-division offices in the two areas.
According to Standing Committee chairman Kamleshbhai Patel, the AMC receives plots of different sizes under town-planning schemes. These plots may be reserved for sale or for public-oriented activities. Since UGVCL is a government undertaking, the then Standing Committee had approved allotting the Motera and Ognaj plots on a 99-year lease.
However, around two and a half to three years after the allotment, UGVCL had not deposited the required amount, the report said. The AMC estate department had sent repeated letters asking the utility to pay for the plots and take possession. With no action from UGVCL, the estate department submitted the matter to the municipal commissioner.
The commissioner subsequently placed a proposal before the Standing Committee to take back both plots. The committee approved the proposal, ending the allotment process for the two sites. The decision puts the plots back under the AMC’s control, although the report did not specify their area, monetary value or any immediate plan for their future use.
The Standing Committee has also directed officials to prepare details of other AMC reserve plots that were allotted to units, agencies or institutions but for which payments have not been made or the prescribed time limit has expired. The committee asked the administration to present the information and complete such cases within the applicable policy and regulatory timelines.
The move comes as the civic body also reviewed water-tank maintenance after bones were found in a water tank in the Asarwa area. Officials told the committee that Ahmedabad has 243 water tanks and that each tank is cleaned twice a year. Cleaning of 96 tanks had been completed according to the schedule at the time of the meeting.
The Standing Committee chairman directed the water department to ensure that tank cleaning takes place regularly under close supervision so that residents receive clean and safe water. The report did not provide details about the source of the material found in the Asarwa tank or announce any separate investigation.
