Explore how MahaRERA’s push for Occupancy Certificate verification and the absence of independent civic bodies in Pune’s merged villages affect the real estate sector, developers, and homebuyers. Understand the legal and infrastructural implications shaping the city’s future.
Urban development in Pune has taken rapid strides over the past decade, with a boom in infrastructure, housing demand, and municipal expansions. However, beneath this growth lies a complex layer of legal, administrative, and regulatory challenges. Two of the most pressing issues currently facing Pune’s urban framework are:
- MahaRERA’s ongoing drive to verify Occupancy Certificates (OCs) of registered projects, and
- The absence of separate civic bodies for newly merged villages in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) jurisdiction.
Both have significant implications for real estate developers, housing societies, and homebuyers across the city.
MahaRERA’s OC Verification Drive: A Step Towards Transparency
The Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) has recently intensified its drive to verify Occupancy Certificates (OCs) for completed and registered projects. The OC is a crucial document that certifies a building’s readiness for occupation and its compliance with sanctioned building plans, fire safety, water, and electricity norms.
Why this matters:
- According to data reviewed in recent months, a large number of registered projects across Maharashtra still lack proper OC verification, despite having completed construction.
- MahaRERA has issued notices to over 19,500 projects, asking developers to upload valid OCs to avoid being marked as incomplete or defaulters.
- The drive is intended to curb illegal occupancy, improve transparency, and ensure that developers do not misuse “completed” project tags for marketing without regulatory clearance.
Implications for Developers and Buyers:
- Developers who fail to comply risk blacklisting or deregistration of their projects, which affects credibility and sales.
- Homebuyers purchasing flats in non-OC projects may face difficulties in getting home loans, water connections, or legal possession.
- It may also lead to delays in housing society formation and conveyance deed execution.
For trusted real estate developers Pune relies on, especially those who operate transparently and ethically, this drive is a welcome step to clean up the market and restore buyer confidence. However, it also poses operational challenges in terms of documentation, compliance, and coordination with authorities.
Merged Villages, But No Separate Civic Body: A Governance Gap
Pune’s municipal limits expanded significantly in 2021, when 34 fringe villages were merged into the PMC jurisdiction. These areas include prominent real estate hubs like Sus, Maan, Mahalunge, and more. The promise was to bring uniformity in planning, infrastructure, and amenities.
However, over two years later, the merged villages still do not have a dedicated civic administration structure, leading to ambiguity and delays in service delivery.
Challenges Faced:
- No clear administrative division means residents of these areas are often left without access to core PMC services like waste collection, drainage repairs, or road maintenance.
- Developers in these regions face approval delays, unclear property taxation mechanisms, and inconsistent building norms.
- Projects are caught in dual compliance between old gram panchayat rules and evolving municipal standards.
Legal Ramifications:
- Homebuyers are often unaware whether their homes are governed under Panchayat rules or PMC rules, which leads to confusion during property transactions.
- Regularization of ongoing or partially completed projects becomes difficult.
- There is no grievance redressal mechanism tailored to these newly added regions, adding to the residents’ frustration.
Impact on Pune’s Real Estate Landscape
These two developments—the OC verification drive and governance vacuum in merged areas—are closely interlinked in shaping the future of Pune’s real estate sector.
For Developers:
- The lack of streamlined approvals and civic clarity in merged villages increases project timelines and costs.
- OC compliance requires strong backend processes, especially for projects that were launched under different planning authorities.
- Many smaller or mid-sized developers may struggle to adapt, leading to consolidation or exit from the market.
For Homebuyers and Residents:
- Prospective buyers are now more cautious, demanding legal clarity, OC-compliant projects, and transparent documentation before purchase.
- Residents of merged areas feel alienated, despite being taxed as urban dwellers, due to poor infrastructure delivery.
- The concept of smart urban growth suffers when administrative lag hinders timely service deployment.
What Needs to Be Done: A Roadmap Forward
To address these issues, a coordinated approach is essential:
- MahaRERA must enforce OC compliance, but also offer handholding support for genuine developers who are facing municipal delays.
- The PMC must urgently form a zonal structure or satellite offices dedicated to merged villages with their own administrative heads and teams.
- Introduce fast-track approvals and legal regularisation schemes for ongoing projects stuck in the transition.
- Empower citizens of merged areas with clear communication channels, so they know which authority to approach for services.
Conclusion: Legal Frameworks Must Evolve With the City
Pune is no longer a mid-sized city—it’s a megacity in the making, driven by IT growth, urban migration, and industrial expansion. But legal frameworks and civic mechanisms must evolve in tandem with its real estate growth.
At Pride Purple Properties, we view these regulatory and civic developments as critical checkpoints. Over the past 28 years, across 30+ projects and over 10 million sq. ft. of development, we’ve learned that growth without governance is unsustainable. That’s why we focus on:
- Complete regulatory compliance,
- Transparent communication with homebuyers,
- Long-term infrastructure planning.
Because every home we build carries the responsibility of shaping not just lives, but cities. Our portfolio of Pride Purple real estate projects continues to reflect our commitment to legal integrity and sustainable urban growth.