New Delhi, Jul 11: Business houses and real estate developers cornered several farmhouse plots, some as many as 11 and eight, at throwaway prices in prime sectors of Noida under a scheme — which is now under a probe — floated by the government of former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati, Indian Express reports.
Over 150 were given the plots after screening by a government-appointed committee. There was no bidding. The probe was ordered in May after a note by Noida CEO Sanjeev Saran said plots of 10,000 sq m each were allotted to 120 companies and 29 individuals at low rates.
In some cases, relatives or acquaintances got multiple plots flanking the expressway connecting Noida and Greater Noida, where property prices have shot up in recent years.
The full list of beneficiaries has now been accessed by The Indian Express through a Right to Information application and government sources. Companies promoted by Ghaziabad industrialists Gyan Prakash Goel and Anil Kumar Mittal and their family members were allotted 11 farmhouse plots, each measuring 10,000 sq m.
Real estate firm 3C Universal Developers Pvt Ltd's promoters, directors and shareholders, and their companies took eight plots. Dharampal Satyapal Sons Pvt Ltd, makers of Rajnigandha paan masala, and its promoters and directors together got six plots.
Businessman Gurdeep Singh Chadha, better known as Ponty Chadha, bagged a plot along with Rajinder Singh Chadha and Javed Ahmed as promoter-cum-director of Brilliant Builders Pvt Ltd. His wife Jatinder Kaur was allotted another plot as promoter-cum-director of Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers Pvt Ltd.
Ajay Rastogi, an official in Ponty Chadha's liquor business, too got a plot. In April 2011, The Indian Express was the first to report on the farmland scheme, under which the father-son duo of lawyers Shanti Bhushan and Jayant Bhushan bagged two plots for a song.
Two plots went to Unnati Infratech Pvt Ltd whose director and promoter is Alka Vikram, wife of Lalit Vikram Basantwani, who was General Manager (Finance) of the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority and Yamuna Expressway Authority. He was suspended after Income Tax searches this year.
A plot measuring 10,360 sq m was allotted to Alka Das, wife of Akhilesh Das Gupta who is currently a BSP Rajya Sabha MP; Vineet Nayar, CEO of HCL Technologies India, took home a nearly 10,000-sq m plot. Former additional solicitor general of India Vikas Singh also got a plot. When contacted, Nayar and Singh confirmed they had been allotted plots.
The Mayawati government had acquired agricultural land in seven villages along the expressway and put them on sale under the Open Ended Scheme For Development of Farm House on Agricultural Land (OES-V) 2008-09. The scheme offered plots across Noida sectors 126, 127, 128, 131, 133, 149 A, 162, 164, 165 and 167.
An audit by the state government's Local Fund Audit Department found that the Noida Authority fixed a rate of Rs 3,100 per sq m for the plots. In the second part of the scheme launched in September 2010, the rate was revised to Rs 3,500 per sq m plus additional location charges. When his comments were sought on the plot rate, Anil Kumar Sharma, Chairman and Managing Director of Amrapali Group, said the rate for a farmhouse plot in the area was approximately Rs 20,000-22,000 per sq m.
Nearly two months after The Indian Express wrote about the farmland allotment to the Bhushans, the Noida Authority came up with an explanation that agricultural land was being marked for farmhouses “to avoid illegal constructions”. In a letter to Alok Kumar, Secretary, UP government, the Authority stated: “Many cities have farmhouses on agricultural land, so we propose that agricultural land be marked for farmhouses in such areas to avoid illegal constructions.”
The farmhouse plot scheme beneficiaries include:
* Ghaziabad industrialists Goels and Mittals: 11 plots
Plots allotted to Ravindra Almirahs Pvt Ltd, Mars Infrabuild Pvt Ltd, AKC Hydropower (P) Ltd, Inspire Infrastructure (P) Ltd, Seven Star Buildtech Pvt Ltd, S B Coolers Pvt Ltd, AKG Infotech Pvt Ltd. Promoters, directors, shareholders of these companies include Gyan Prakash Goel, Madhu Goel, Abhinav Goel, Vaibhav Mittal, Mridula Mittal, Anil Kumar Mittal, Anil Kumar Gupta.
Vaibhav Mittal said: “We got farmhouse plots but in our individual capacity.” Asked about the 11 farmhouse plots, Gyan Prakash Goel said: “I have knowledge about a few companies, not all. Anil Mittal is a friend and business partner. But I cannot comment on farmhouses.”
* 3C Universal Developers Pvt Ltd: 8 plots
Individual plots allotted to Nirmal Singh, Surpreet Singh Suri, Vidur Bhardwaj and wife Richa Bhardwaj — all shown as promoters and directors — Constant eFine Infosoftech (P) Ltd, Comprehensive IT Developers (P) Ltd, MD Web Designers (P) Ltd and M/s Challengerz Web Solutions (P) Ltd.
Nirmal Singh said: “We got farmhouses. But different directors got it, not the company 3C.”
* Dharampal Satyapal Group: 6 plots
Plots allotted to Dharampal Satyapal Sons Pvt Ltd (promoters, directors, shareholders are Rajiv Kumar, Ravinder Kumar, Atul Jain, Raghav Gupta, Rita Kumar Gupta); Rajiv Kumar; Spiritual Infrastructure (P) Ltd (Rajiv Kumar and Sunita Gupta are listed promoters, directors and shareholders); Baba Global Ltd (promoters, directors and shareholders are Ravinder Kumar, Sunita Gupta, Raghav Kumar, M/s Dharampal Satyapal, Rajiv Kumar, while Raj Kumar Kakraini is its full-time director); DS Infra Projects P Ltd (Rajiv Kumar is shown as director/promoter/shareholder); Gatik Infratech Pvt Ltd ( Rajiv Kumar is shown as director/promoter/shareholder).
Brig (retd) Mahendra Kumar, who represented Rajiv Kumar in the interview for the plots, said being an employee, he could not say much.
* Agarwals of Sainik Farms, New Delhi: 5 plots
Plots allotted to Titli Exports (P) Ltd, Kanha Propmart (P) Ltd, Symbiosis Textiles (P) Ltd, Great Value Buildwell (P) Ltd, Dreamland Exim Pvt Ltd. The addresses of the companies are that of the Agarwal residence at 58A/4 Sainik Farms, New Delhi. Promoters, directors and shareholders of these companies include Manoj Kumar Agarwal, Navratan Agarwal, Pragya Agarwal, Umesh Agarwal, Mayank Agarwal and Sachin Agarwal.
Mayank Agarwal said family members are shareholders/promoters and directors in the companies that have been allotted farmhouse plots. Manoj Agarwal said some of his companies had been given to relatives and friends.
* Ponty Chadha's Brilliant Builders (P) Ltd & Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers (P) Ltd: 3 plots
Two plots allotted to Brilliant Builders. Rajinder Singh Chadha and Javed Ahmed are its promoters and directors while Gurdeep Singh Chadha is listed as a shareholder. Another plot allotted to Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers whose promoters are Jatinder Kaur, wife of Gurdeep Singh Chadha, and Lalit Kapoor.
M S Mehra, PA to the Chadhas, said: “Yes, Brilliant Builders and Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers are Ponty Sir's companies and have got farmhouse plots. But the family is not here to comment on the issue.”
* Sunil Chopra & Group Companies: 3 plots
Plots allotted to Sunil Chopra (promoter of Windsor projects), Dyna Infosoft (P) Ltd and Apra Motels (P) Ltd.
Chopra said: “I have only one farmhouse plot in my name. Dyna belongs to my relatives which I bought later along with Apra Motels.”
Over 150 were given the plots after screening by a government-appointed committee. There was no bidding. The probe was ordered in May after a note by Noida CEO Sanjeev Saran said plots of 10,000 sq m each were allotted to 120 companies and 29 individuals at low rates.
In some cases, relatives or acquaintances got multiple plots flanking the expressway connecting Noida and Greater Noida, where property prices have shot up in recent years.
The full list of beneficiaries has now been accessed by The Indian Express through a Right to Information application and government sources. Companies promoted by Ghaziabad industrialists Gyan Prakash Goel and Anil Kumar Mittal and their family members were allotted 11 farmhouse plots, each measuring 10,000 sq m.
Real estate firm 3C Universal Developers Pvt Ltd's promoters, directors and shareholders, and their companies took eight plots. Dharampal Satyapal Sons Pvt Ltd, makers of Rajnigandha paan masala, and its promoters and directors together got six plots.
Businessman Gurdeep Singh Chadha, better known as Ponty Chadha, bagged a plot along with Rajinder Singh Chadha and Javed Ahmed as promoter-cum-director of Brilliant Builders Pvt Ltd. His wife Jatinder Kaur was allotted another plot as promoter-cum-director of Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers Pvt Ltd.
Ajay Rastogi, an official in Ponty Chadha's liquor business, too got a plot. In April 2011, The Indian Express was the first to report on the farmland scheme, under which the father-son duo of lawyers Shanti Bhushan and Jayant Bhushan bagged two plots for a song.
Two plots went to Unnati Infratech Pvt Ltd whose director and promoter is Alka Vikram, wife of Lalit Vikram Basantwani, who was General Manager (Finance) of the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority and Yamuna Expressway Authority. He was suspended after Income Tax searches this year.
A plot measuring 10,360 sq m was allotted to Alka Das, wife of Akhilesh Das Gupta who is currently a BSP Rajya Sabha MP; Vineet Nayar, CEO of HCL Technologies India, took home a nearly 10,000-sq m plot. Former additional solicitor general of India Vikas Singh also got a plot. When contacted, Nayar and Singh confirmed they had been allotted plots.
The Mayawati government had acquired agricultural land in seven villages along the expressway and put them on sale under the Open Ended Scheme For Development of Farm House on Agricultural Land (OES-V) 2008-09. The scheme offered plots across Noida sectors 126, 127, 128, 131, 133, 149 A, 162, 164, 165 and 167.
An audit by the state government's Local Fund Audit Department found that the Noida Authority fixed a rate of Rs 3,100 per sq m for the plots. In the second part of the scheme launched in September 2010, the rate was revised to Rs 3,500 per sq m plus additional location charges. When his comments were sought on the plot rate, Anil Kumar Sharma, Chairman and Managing Director of Amrapali Group, said the rate for a farmhouse plot in the area was approximately Rs 20,000-22,000 per sq m.
Nearly two months after The Indian Express wrote about the farmland allotment to the Bhushans, the Noida Authority came up with an explanation that agricultural land was being marked for farmhouses “to avoid illegal constructions”. In a letter to Alok Kumar, Secretary, UP government, the Authority stated: “Many cities have farmhouses on agricultural land, so we propose that agricultural land be marked for farmhouses in such areas to avoid illegal constructions.”
The farmhouse plot scheme beneficiaries include:
* Ghaziabad industrialists Goels and Mittals: 11 plots
Plots allotted to Ravindra Almirahs Pvt Ltd, Mars Infrabuild Pvt Ltd, AKC Hydropower (P) Ltd, Inspire Infrastructure (P) Ltd, Seven Star Buildtech Pvt Ltd, S B Coolers Pvt Ltd, AKG Infotech Pvt Ltd. Promoters, directors, shareholders of these companies include Gyan Prakash Goel, Madhu Goel, Abhinav Goel, Vaibhav Mittal, Mridula Mittal, Anil Kumar Mittal, Anil Kumar Gupta.
Vaibhav Mittal said: “We got farmhouse plots but in our individual capacity.” Asked about the 11 farmhouse plots, Gyan Prakash Goel said: “I have knowledge about a few companies, not all. Anil Mittal is a friend and business partner. But I cannot comment on farmhouses.”
* 3C Universal Developers Pvt Ltd: 8 plots
Individual plots allotted to Nirmal Singh, Surpreet Singh Suri, Vidur Bhardwaj and wife Richa Bhardwaj — all shown as promoters and directors — Constant eFine Infosoftech (P) Ltd, Comprehensive IT Developers (P) Ltd, MD Web Designers (P) Ltd and M/s Challengerz Web Solutions (P) Ltd.
Nirmal Singh said: “We got farmhouses. But different directors got it, not the company 3C.”
* Dharampal Satyapal Group: 6 plots
Plots allotted to Dharampal Satyapal Sons Pvt Ltd (promoters, directors, shareholders are Rajiv Kumar, Ravinder Kumar, Atul Jain, Raghav Gupta, Rita Kumar Gupta); Rajiv Kumar; Spiritual Infrastructure (P) Ltd (Rajiv Kumar and Sunita Gupta are listed promoters, directors and shareholders); Baba Global Ltd (promoters, directors and shareholders are Ravinder Kumar, Sunita Gupta, Raghav Kumar, M/s Dharampal Satyapal, Rajiv Kumar, while Raj Kumar Kakraini is its full-time director); DS Infra Projects P Ltd (Rajiv Kumar is shown as director/promoter/shareholder); Gatik Infratech Pvt Ltd ( Rajiv Kumar is shown as director/promoter/shareholder).
Brig (retd) Mahendra Kumar, who represented Rajiv Kumar in the interview for the plots, said being an employee, he could not say much.
* Agarwals of Sainik Farms, New Delhi: 5 plots
Plots allotted to Titli Exports (P) Ltd, Kanha Propmart (P) Ltd, Symbiosis Textiles (P) Ltd, Great Value Buildwell (P) Ltd, Dreamland Exim Pvt Ltd. The addresses of the companies are that of the Agarwal residence at 58A/4 Sainik Farms, New Delhi. Promoters, directors and shareholders of these companies include Manoj Kumar Agarwal, Navratan Agarwal, Pragya Agarwal, Umesh Agarwal, Mayank Agarwal and Sachin Agarwal.
Mayank Agarwal said family members are shareholders/promoters and directors in the companies that have been allotted farmhouse plots. Manoj Agarwal said some of his companies had been given to relatives and friends.
* Ponty Chadha's Brilliant Builders (P) Ltd & Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers (P) Ltd: 3 plots
Two plots allotted to Brilliant Builders. Rajinder Singh Chadha and Javed Ahmed are its promoters and directors while Gurdeep Singh Chadha is listed as a shareholder. Another plot allotted to Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers whose promoters are Jatinder Kaur, wife of Gurdeep Singh Chadha, and Lalit Kapoor.
M S Mehra, PA to the Chadhas, said: “Yes, Brilliant Builders and Jagat Guru Real Estate Developers are Ponty Sir's companies and have got farmhouse plots. But the family is not here to comment on the issue.”
* Sunil Chopra & Group Companies: 3 plots
Plots allotted to Sunil Chopra (promoter of Windsor projects), Dyna Infosoft (P) Ltd and Apra Motels (P) Ltd.
Chopra said: “I have only one farmhouse plot in my name. Dyna belongs to my relatives which I bought later along with Apra Motels.”
