The residents of ROF Aalayas in Sector 102 staged a protest on Sunday against their builder for charging maintenance fee of Rs 2.75 per/sqft per month without issuing any notice.
The residents said as the society has been developed as an affordable site, the builder is legally not entitled to charge maintenance fee for the next five years. They have written to the chief minister and the department of town and country planning demanding immediate intervention.
Residents said the builder is deducting maintenance fee from the pre-paid electricity account without their knowledge. “It is to our surprise that the maintenance officer started deducting money without a prior notice from the pre-paid meter. We have written to the builder and asked for a clarification. Even after 10 days, we are still awaiting a reply. Maintenance charges are being deducted daily from the electricity meter. I have never received any receipts of the money the builder is charging us,” said Dheerendra Pratap Singh, a resident.
Residents also said they are being charged Rs 7.10 per unit for the electricity.
“We are being asked to pay high electricity charges which is technically wrong as per affordable housing society norms,” Singh added.
Another resident, SS Rohila, said, “There is no transparency related to maintenance charges that the builder is forcing us to pay. The society is an affordable property and we are not supposed to pay anything for the next five years as per the norms. The builder has failed to maintain the society properly as we are suffering from defunct lift every now and then.” added Rohilla.
Meanwhile, a representative from the builder’s side pointed out that they are working to solve all inconveniences faced by the residents. “The maintenance charges are very nominal and there are no such rules that the residents will not pay for the maintenance for five years. We have invited them to talk about their issues and we are open to reduce the charges as well. The residents are supposed to pay salaries of the maintenance staff. The builder is responsible for upgrading the electricity and DG sets while residents should pay for cleaning and horticultural work,” the spokesperson said.
