Apart from other areas of the state, lessees of land from government organisations now have the option to change the nature of their plots to freehold by paying a cost that varies between 7.5% and 20% of the land value. These areas include New Town, Salt Lake, and some areas off the EM Bypass in Kolkata.
Enabling the unrestricted sale of government-leased lands is a step that is anticipated to increase state revenue and make doing business easier.
The municipal affairs and urban development department announced (Leasehold Land to Freehold) West Bengal Land Conversion Scheme, 2022, on Tuesday via notification. It is intended for both residential property & commercial plots. It applies to plots leased for 99 years or more by government organisations such as the West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (WBHIDCO), New Town Kolkata Development Authority, and Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA).
The programme will also be beneficial to owners of properties leased by the Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority, Asansol Durgapur Improvement Authority, and Sriniketan Santiniketan Development Authority.
The transfer of New Town’s leasehold properties back to freehold status represents a reversal of the freehold rule that prevailed up until 2011 when the initial Mamata Banerjee government enacted leasehold.
This plan does not apply to Salt Lake City’s individual housing parcels that the city’s urban development agency sold.
The plan was announced a week or so after the Bengal ministry made a significant policy choice to provide freehold land for industrial and commercial use, with similar goals of increasing state revenue and economic activity.
For developers and private property owners, leasehold land presents challenges. The latter must contact the agency for approval to sell or buy, while the former encounters obstacles and delays when mortgaging and marketing projects because clearances from the leasing company are needed at every stage.
Siddharth Pansari, president of Credai Bengal, stated, “We feel it’s a wonderful move by the government, both for convenience of conducting business and comfort of living.” The benefit will extend to thousands of individuals and small and medium-sized businesses.
