Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: Nearly two months after the State Government rolled out its flagship ‘Mhajo Flat’ scheme to help flat owners secure legal ownership of their properties, the initiative is yet to receive a single application.
Cooperation Minister Subhash Shirodkar informed the Assembly that no application has been received under the scheme so far, despite the government targeting around 40,000 to 50,000 flat owners.
Shirodkar said cooperative housing societies that do not have a conveyance or title deed are eligible to benefit from the scheme.
The scheme was brought into effect through the Goa Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026, promulgated on July 7. It seeks to address the long-standing issue faced by flat owners whose cooperative housing societies have been unable to obtain formal conveyance deeds because of unresolved matters involving builders or landowners.
Describing the objective of the initiative as “No title to Giving Title”, Shirodkar said several cooperative housing societies have been unable to get the land and buildings conveyed in their names due to various issues involving builders and landowners.
The amended framework allows eligible societies to pursue unilateral deemed conveyance where a builder or landowner fails to execute the necessary deed.
Under the procedure, a designated officer will examine the documents and submit a report to the competent cooperative officer. The latter can then direct registration of the conveyance even in cases where disputes between the builder and landowner remain unresolved.
The entire process is mandated to be completed within one year from the date of application. Builders or promoters found obstructing the process can face a penalty of up to Rs 10 lakh, along with an additional Rs 5,000 for every day of continued default.
The government has also sought to make the process more affordable by fixing the registration fee for unilateral deemed conveyance at Rs 10,000. Concessional stamp duty will apply depending on the location and nature of the property, while conveyances executed by individual members in favour of cooperative housing societies have been exempted from stamp duty.
The ordinance also permits owners of buildings constructed before the implementation of RERA and containing three or more dwelling units to form cooperative housing societies.
In addition, the amended provisions establish a framework for redevelopment of cooperative housing properties and create the Society’s Advisory Harmony and Redressal Authority (SAHARA) to deal with grievances and disputes involving cooperative housing societies.
