20-06-2025
Gurugram seeks policy to audit older group housing units
The Gurugram district administration and the department of town and country planning (DTCP) have sought intervention from higher authorities to frame a policy for conducting structural audits of existing group housing societies, effectively halting the ongoing audit process.
Officials said the move follows legal, financial, and procedural challenges encountered during the audits already conducted.
In 2022, the Haryana government had directed structural audits following the collapse of a tower at Chintels Paradiso in Sector 109, which claimed two lives. Since then, 15 group housing societies have undergone structural audits, but the process has exposed the absence of a statutory framework to support such inspections.
A senior DTCP official said that the district committee overseeing the audits has encountered several legal hurdles. 'There is no statutory framework defining how structural audits of older group housing societies should be conducted, or who is responsible. The process has been constrained by the absence of guidelines about roles, responsibilities, and funding,' the official said, requesting anonymity.
The committee has now decided to pause the process and seek a formal policy from the state government outlining procedures, defining stakeholder obligations—including government agencies, builders, and homebuyers—and providing clarity on cost-sharing mechanisms.
In one instance, a complaint from a homeowner in a condominium in Sector 104 was dismissed by the committee, which stated it lacked the authority to intervene in builder-buyer disputes governed by individual agreements. The committee noted that disagreements about construction quality or repairs must be resolved through mechanisms outlined in the Builder-Buyer Agreement (BBA).
DTCP officials said that audits so far were conducted through empanelled consultants, with costs borne by developers. However, many issues surfaced regarding cost distribution, standard operating procedures, and resistance from stakeholders. While the district had later decided that audit costs for 23 additional societies would be shared equally between developers and homebuyers, the absence of legal backing led to delays and disputes, often stalling the audits altogether.
Officials added that while a policy exists for the structural audit of newly constructed societies, an equivalent framework for older societies is urgently needed.
In a meeting on May 23, the district committee, chaired by the deputy commissioner, formally recommended that DTCP Haryana frame statutory guidelines to mandate structural audits for existing group housing societies across the state.
