Curation Team
LUCKNOW: The Lucknow Development Authority will now take over the development of South City after terminating its 37-year-old agreement with Unitech Builders.
The authority has decided to complete pending civic work, including roads, drains, parks and other facilities, using funds raised from selling properties still held by the group. The proposal for taking back the property and cancelling the agreement was proposed at a board meeting held on Aug 5 which was approved by the board member. The decision comes as a relief to residents, many of whom invested in the township decades ago but were left waiting for essential services. The LDA said work will begin after the necessary administrative approvals and property assessments are completed.
The agreement, signed on July 20, 1988, authorised Unitech to develop the township as a licensee. While part of the project was completed, officials said the builder violated several terms of the contract and later became insolvent. “We have terminated the contract to ensure residents get the facilities they were promised. The LDA will finish the remaining development work without further delay,” an LDA official said.
Spread over several blocks, South City has more than 2,000 residential units, 18 large parks, schools like Millennium and LPS, Garden Galleria Mall, petrol pumps, commercial complexes, shops and smaller houses. The residential section is divided into nine blocks, each with 200–250 plots.
Residents said the builder’s office in the colony was closed in 2010–11 and no staff returned thereafter. Complaints about incomplete amenities have continued for over a decade. The builder’s insolvency case is currently being heard in the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).
LDA officials said the takeover will allow them to address civic issues that have persisted for years.Along with completing infrastructure work, plans include building a community centre and improving public spaces. The authority said it would prioritise drainage and road repairs to improve connectivity and sanitation.
