PANAJI
In a surprise development DLF, India's largest listed real estate company has moved Goa's Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) for cancellation of the registration of its ongoing, controversial Rs 450 crore 'Bay View' project atop the Reis Magos hill overlooking the Mandovi river.
The application was filed by M/s DLF Exclusive Floors Pvt Ltd and Bhamini Real Estate Developers Pvt Ltd and seeks the cancellation of the RERA registration for their Bay View project.
Goa RERA on Friday issued a public notice asking any person or legal entity who may be aggrieved with DLF's cancellation of their registration of the project with the authority to file their objections before it within 15 days.
There was no official communication from DLF related to the development or the reasons that led the company to seek withdrawal of the project, the very scale of which had triggered widespread protests in the village for several months recently.
The project plans envisaged constructing 84 villas atop the hill and the entire project was valued at Rs 443 crore.
A senior RERA official, however, said it was possible that the company applied to cancel the project's registration because it wants to modify the plans.
After persistent protests in Reis Magos over allegations of large-scale illegal hill cutting at the site and vegetation shaved off the hillock, Town and Country Planning Minister Vishwajit Rane had announced that the approvals given to the project would be reviewed.
"They may have applied for cancellation of the earlier registration as they may have decided to change the plans of the project with the North Goa Planning and Development Authority (PDA) and the Town and Country Planning Department (TCP)," a senior Goa RERA official who wished not to be identified said.
He added, that after making changes in their plans and getting the clearances for the modifications from the NGPDA and the TCP department, the company can re-register the project anew by submitting the approved revised plans to RERA.
The project registered with RERA had proposed building the 84 villas on a sprawling parcel of 28,474 square meters of land atop the Reis Magos hill with the entire plateau stripped of its vegetation. The plans were approved by the TCP department and the NGPDA.
