Gujarat govt proposes bill to regulate housing societies

November 10, 2023: The Gujarat government is planning to introduce a bill in the next legislative assembly session aimed to regulate and enhance the functioning of housing societies across the state, according to a TOI report. The proposed law is expected to provide clear guidelines on a range of subjects and disputes concerning housing societies.

At present, residential societies in the state are governed by guidelines set by the Registrar of Cooperatives. However, there are several issues that often lead to disputes among members, the media report said.

The media report, citing sources, stated that the proposed law would cover aspects such as governance matters, elections, appointments of committee members, disputes in the sale of residential units, audit of accounts of societies and adherence to government norms like fire safety, drainage, etc. A draft of the proposed legislation is being prepared and inputs are being sought from different line departments with which housing societies are concerned.

Further, an authority to deal with issues of housing societies will be set up. According to sources cited in the media report, the functioning of housing societies is different from agricultural or other cooperative societies. A significant section of the population is directly connected to the functioning of housing societies. An authority to oversee their functioning is suggested in the bill.

The volume of the societies are high and it has been observed that the registrar of cooperatives does not have the workforce to tackle matters concerning housing societies. There are also several housing societies whose accounts have not been audited for years, the media report mentioned.

November 10, 2023: The Gujarat government is planning to introduce a bill in the next legislative assembly session aimed to regulate and enhance the functioning of housing societies across the state, according to a TOI report. The proposed law is expected to provide clear guidelines on a range of subjects and disputes concerning housing societies.

At present, residential societies in the state are governed by guidelines set by the Registrar of Cooperatives. However, there are several issues that often lead to disputes among members, the media report said.

The media report, citing sources, stated that the proposed law would cover aspects such as governance matters, elections, appointments of committee members, disputes in the sale of residential units, audit of accounts of societies and adherence to government norms like fire safety, drainage, etc. A draft of the proposed legislation is being prepared and inputs are being sought from different line departments with which housing societies are concerned.

Further, an authority to deal with issues of housing societies will be set up. According to sources cited in the media report, the functioning of housing societies is different from agricultural or other cooperative societies. A significant section of the population is directly connected to the functioning of housing societies. An authority to oversee their functioning is suggested in the bill.

The volume of the societies are high and it has been observed that the registrar of cooperatives does not have the workforce to tackle matters concerning housing societies. There are also several housing societies whose accounts have not been audited for years, the media report mentioned.