Will expedite approvals: Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel

AHMEDABAD: Gujarat chief minister Bhupendra Patel committed to developers that due efforts will be made to expedite approvals for real estate projects. The chief minister was present at the valedictory ceremony of the 16th edition of the GIHED Property Show on Sunday evening.
The three-day show culminated with an overwhelming response from developers and investors, drawing at least 80,000 visitors.
Developers had emphasized the need to expedite CGDCR, RERA, revenue department and environmental clearances for real estate projects during their discussions with the chief minister.
“I have taken note of your representations and we will do the needful to address them,” said Patel. “I also want to reduce the approval time to three months, but developers need to tell us how it can be achieved.” He added: “The demand for a price index in real estate is a valid one and we will represent it to the Centre.” Revenue minister Rajendra Trivedi along with MoS urban development and urban housing Vinod Moradiya were present at the ceremony.
“We do not want any incentives. We have requested the CM to set up a committee comprising senior government officials and developers to fast-track various approvals,” said Tejas Joshi, president, CREDAI-Ahmedabad GIHED. “We want the time for receiving the RERA approval reduced to 3-4 months. It takes 10-12 months at present.” Joshi added: “Faster clearances will increase the pace of development in Ahmedabad and other cities.”
Jaxay Shah, the immediate past chairman of CREDAI, said real estate investment has emerged as social security in the wake of the uncertainty triggered by the pandemic. About 250 projects were featured at the show.