Bhubaneswar: In a significant move to simplify property registration and reduce financial burden on homebuyers, the Odisha Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Wednesday approved key amendments to the Indian Stamp Act-1899 through an ordinance.
The decision aims to streamline the implementation of the Odisha Apartment (Ownership and Management) Act-2023 and remove bottlenecks in transferring common areas and facilities to the associations of allottees.
Under the existing provisions, the association of allottees was required to pay 5 per cent stamp duty for execution of the deed of conveyance to take ownership of common areas and facilities, an obligation that often imposed heavy financial burden and delayed the registration process.
With the cabinet’s approval, associations will now only need to pay a nominal stamp duty of Rs 50,000 for executing such conveyance deeds, making the process far more affordable and efficient. The cabinet has also rationalized stamp duty for individual apartment buyers. Previously, stamp duty was levied in three slabs – 3 pc, 4 pc, and 5 pc, depending on the property value. This has now been replaced with a uniform rate of 5 pc.
The undivided proportionate share in common areas and facilities will be collected at the time of execution of individual deeds of conveyance in favour of allottees.
Addressing mediapersons after the cabinet meeting, Chief Secretary Anu Garg said the reform will not only simplify the registration framework but also ensure better compliance and safeguard government revenue by eliminating ambiguity in stamp duty calculations.
The ordinance route has been adopted to ensure the changes come into effect immediately and benefit thousands of homebuyers and housing societies, while also accelerating real estate transactions and improving transparency in Odisha’s housing sector.
New bridge over Kathajodi river
The cabinet also approved construction of a high-level bridge over Kathajodi river on the upstream side of existing Subash Chandra Bose Setu to establish a direct link between Cuttack and Bhubaneswar. The bridge is expected to ease traffic congestion on NH-16 that connects the two cities. The road from Bhubaneswar airport to Nandankanan Zoological Park is under proposal for eight-laning, which will provide a direct and faster connectivity to Cuttack for which the construction of the bridge is very significant.
State Data Policy 2.0 gets nod
The government also approved the Odisha State Data Policy 2.0 to enhance data-driven governance and advance digital transformation. The policy aims to institutionalise a comprehensive and robust data governance framework across the entire data lifecycle and use the data generated by various departments and associated organisations.