Noida: Noida Authority has put on hold an additional maintenance charge of Rs 1.5 per sqft proposed by Suraksha Realty for Jaypee Wish Town and set up a six-member panel to examine residents’ complaints that the fee was based on duplicated expenses.Last month, Suraksha Group, a Mumbai-based realtor completing 159 towers that were stalled when it took over Jaypee Infratech Ltd’s (JIL) operations in 2023, introduced the shared area maintenance (SAM) charge from Nov, citing operation, maintenance and upkeep of township-level infrastructure and shared services. These include sewage treatment plants (STPs), water treatment plants (WTPs), borewells and associated water infrastructure, streetlights, horticulture, landscaping and roads.On Oct 23, township residents in sectors 131, 132, 133 and 134 staged a protest against the “arbitrary” levy, which they said would raise their monthly maintenance bills from around Rs 6,000 to Rs 10,000. Residents are currently paying Rs 3.2 per sqft in common area maintenance (CAM) charges. CAM charges cover electricity, lighting, water supply and DG backup for shared areas, housekeeping, security, and upkeep of lifts, pumps, fire-safety systems, equipment and shared amenities. Flat owners also alleged that the charges were introduced without consulting them.A group of residents had urged Noida Authority chief executive officer Krishna Karunesh to intervene and revoke what they called “arbitrary” charges based on duplicated expenses. The Authority subsequently constituted a six-member committee of residents, developer representatives and police officials to examine the issue and facilitate talks between the two sides.“Suraksha Realty’s proposed SAM charges have been put on hold until the committee arrives at a decision,” OSD Santosh Kumar told TOI on Friday.While residents have called off the protest following the Authority’s intervention, they alleged that the developer was charging Rs 885 per sqft for issuing no-objection certificates (NOCs) on the transfer or sale of an apartment, amounting to Rs 10-12 lakh per flat against the stipulated fee of Rs 25,000.The Authority said the committee would examine this issue as well and has put the issuance of NOCs by the developer on hold until a decision is taken.The land for Jaypee Wish Town was allotted by Yamuna Authority, while Noida Authority handles all Rera-related regulatory matters, including map approvals, construction compliance and occupancy and completion certificates. However, when such issues arise, the two authorities often pass the buck.“We also want Noida Authority and Yamuna Authority to resolve the issue of which Authority will be responsible for handling the Wish Town project because residents face a lot of problems in resolving the township’s internal issues,” said Brijesh Singh, president of the Jaypee Kosmos AOA.Jaypee Wish Town was developed by JIL. Corporate insolvency resolution proceedings against the company began in Aug 2017 following an application by an IDBI Bank-led consortium. The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved Suraksha Group’s bid to acquire JIL on March 7, 2023, and the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) upheld the resolution plan in May 2024. Under the plan, Suraksha had committed to completing the projects within 40 months.Suraksha Group has since renamed JIL as Suraksha Infra & Developers Ltd, which will manage the Wish Town projects.
