More than a week after Union home minister Amit Shah promised three Diwali gifts for Chandigarh, the announcements remain elusive, with the UT administration still awaiting the Ministry of home affairs’ (MHA) clearance on key proposals concerning property ownership and industrial development.
The three proposed measures include conversion of leasehold commercial and industrial properties into freehold, amendments to master plan, and grant of ownership rights to eligible residents of rehabilitation colonies. No formal announcement has been made so far, leaving thousands of property owners, traders, industrialists and rehabilitation-colony residents waiting for relief.
Shah, during his visit on November 1 for the 60th Raising Day celebrations of Chandigarh Police, had indicated that three long-pending issues would be resolved soon. He had left it to UT administrator Gulab Chand Kataria to make the formal announcements.
The proposed leasehold-to-freehold conversion is among the most significant of the pending measures. Chandigarh has around 15,016 commercial and industrial properties, of which approximately 8,600 are on leasehold basis. The conversion would give eligible owners full ownership rights and make it easier to transfer or sell properties and raise loans against them.
The issue has been pending for more than two decades. The administration’s earlier proposal was rejected by the MHA in July 2024. It subsequently prepared a fresh proposal, which was approved by the UT in May this year and forwarded to the ministry. In September, the administration also sent a revised proposal suggesting conversion charges of around 50% of the prevailing collector rate for allotted properties and 25% for properties originally allotted through auction.
Another key proposal concerns increasing the FAR to 2 in the Industrial Area. The move is expected to allow industrialists to utilise their existing plots more efficiently by constructing additional floors and expanding their operational space. The existing restrictive building norms have been a long-standing concern for industrial units, particularly those in Phases I and II, which face limitations in expanding their businesses within available space.
The third proposal relates to granting ownership rights to eligible original allottees of houses in rehabilitation colonies. Around 34,965 houses are covered under the administration’s proposal, although approximately 22,000 original allottees are expected to benefit in the first phase. The proposal excludes subsequent purchasers who acquired properties through general power of attorney arrangements.
Naina Mishra is a Senior Reporter with Hindustan Times, reporting on the governance and policymaking in Chandigarh. With over eight years in journalism, she is known for incisive, ground-level reporting that holds power to account. She has extensively covered crime, documenting everything from street-level violence to complex financial frauds, with a focus on exposing patterns, networks, and systemic lapses often missed in official narratives. She continues to report on the evolving challenges of city administration, infrastructure, and public service delivery with depth and clarity.Read More