The Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) has revised the payment terms for its Ekamra Residency housing project, deciding that the Rs 10,000 application fee paid by successful applicants will be adjusted against the final cost of their flats. Applicants who do not receive an allotment will get the fee back along with their Rs 2 lakh earnest money deposit (EMD).
The decision was taken at the BDA’s 153rd authority meeting chaired by housing and urban development minister and BDA chairman Krushna Chandra Mahapatra. It follows concerns over the earlier arrangement, under which applicants had to pay a non-refundable Rs 10,000 participation fee in addition to the refundable EMD merely to enter the housing lottery.
The revised arrangement means successful applicants will no longer lose the application fee as a separate charge. Unsuccessful applicants will receive a full refund of the Rs 2 lakh EMD and the Rs 10,000 participation fee, according to the report.
The earlier payment structure required prospective buyers to block Rs 2.1 lakh to participate in the draw while facing the possibility of losing Rs 10,000 if they were not allotted a flat. The arrangement had drawn criticism from applicants and legal experts, who questioned the basis for retaining the fee regardless of the lottery outcome.
BDA has also announced other financial concessions for Ekamra Residency allottees. These include an exemption from the Goods and Services Tax and a 5% concession on stamp duty. The flats will be offered on a freehold basis and will include one year of free maintenance.
“Our primary objective is to provide quality housing to the citizens. The decisions in the meeting today regarding the housing project were made accordingly,” Mahapatra said, according to the report.
Applications are currently being accepted for the ready-to-move-in project at Subudhipur in Bhubaneswar. Ekamra Residency is spread across 7.36 acres and includes three residential towers offering 2BHK and 2BHK-plus-study apartments.
The project’s listed amenities include a swimming pool, gymnasium, community hall, children’s play area, jogging track, power backup, CCTV surveillance and landscaped open spaces. The fee revision changes the immediate financial exposure for applicants, while the GST exemption and stamp duty concession reduce additional transaction costs for successful allottees.
The authority meeting also approved 10 town planning schemes covering nearly 1,815 acres in and around Bhubaneswar. It further cleared proposals connected with the development of lake zones along drain number 10. The next steps for the housing project will involve processing applications and conducting the allotment process under the revised payment terms.
