Taking charge ceremony of newly elected office bearers of Builders Association of India concluded

(Anand J Gupta elected Vice President of Builders Association of India; Jaiprakash Bhatia elected Chairman, and Rajiv Sable as Chairman, Raigad center

Gupta set a 4-point program for the welfare and development of the construction industry)

Mumbai : The organizational elections for 2024-25 of Builders Association of India (BAI) resulted in the election of Shri Anand J Gupta as Vice President, Shri Jaiprakash Bhatia as Chairman of BAI and Shri Rajiv Sable as Chairman of BAI Raigad Centre along with other office bearers of both the centers. The body was elected as the culmination of the elections on Friday, April 19, 2024.

Soon after the election as Vice President of BAI, Shri Anand J Gupta announced a 3-point agenda set by him for the welfare and development of the construction and builders industry. He said that he was determined to get the agenda implemented during his tenure.

Mr Gupta said that he has designed a Three -point agenda to bring major changes in the construction and labour industry. “First of all, I would like to make the government three major changes that would be a major relief to the contractors. There should be the provision of interest on the payments delayed by the government, municipal corporations and other local bodies. Similarly, the provision of arbitration would help resolve the disputes between the contractors and government agencies. At the same time, there should be a clause of escalation on the equitation basis. If these three clauses are introduced, they will prove a major relief. We have consulted our legal experts for their opinion and are going to file a petition against the government to ensure every agreement will have these provisions,” he said.

“Secondly, I am determined to push for the Unified Contract Conditions. Its draft is pending with Niti Aayog and is shuttling between the finance department and the Aayog. Its approval will help in bringing ease of doing business and fairplay to all the concerned,” he said.

Mr Gupta said that the labor cess’s wise use was the most important to bring in labor welfare in a true sense. He said that more than Rs 60,000 crore collected by the central government over the last 25 years is misused in the name of the welfare of the labour. “A lot of them is the duplication between state and central government schmes in the name of labour welfare. I think the most important thing that needs to be done is the skilling of the laborer as we are far behind in the skilled workforce comparing the developed countries in the world. The whole money collected through the cess needs to be spent on the skilling of the labor by setting up units at each project site and appointing paid trainers. This would be the best practice in uplifting the laborers,” he added.

“The fourth change that needs to be brought is the amendment in the RERA Act. Some of its provisions have been creating unnecessary problems for the construction industry hampering the ease of doing business. Some of the circulars issued by MahaRERA need to be rethought and corrected. If these changes are done, there would be new directions and benefits given to the industry,” he concluded.

Mr Gupta said that he, as the vice president of BAI, is determined to bring in these changes during his tenure. Shri Anand J. Gupta is a Civil Engineer, Contractor and Real Estate Developer. He heads a group of companies involved in construction activities in a big way, across Mumbai, Pune, Konkan and Goa and it has executed many prestigious projects. An active Rotarian, Mr Gupta has been associated with BAI for a very long time and has been Chairman of BAI Mumbai Centre and Hon. Gen. Secretary and Hon. Gen. Treasurer of BAI.

Shri Jaiprakash Bhatia is a contractor heding M/s Aardee Enterprises and have carried out works in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The works consisted of industrial, buildings and all types of civil works. Among others, his clients include Tata Oil Mills Ltd., Tata Electrical Ltd., Cricket Club of India, Mumbai Port Trust, etc. Presently he is carrying out a big residential project in Varanasi.

Shri Rajiv Sable is an Advocate and a contractor and builder from Raigad, Konkan region. He is an active politician, educationist, sports enthusiast and social activist.

The function orgnised for the installation of the new body was graced by Shri K. Viswanathan, President, BAI as the Chief Guest. Shri R. Radhakrishnan, Past President & Past Trustee, BAI; Shri S. A. Vichare, Past President, BAI and Shri Lal Chand Sharma, Past President & Chairman, Board of Trustees, BAI were the Installing officers.

On the occasion Spoorthi (Ladies Wing) of BAI Mumbai Centre was launched.
There were guests from across India for the installation function. Stalwarts from the construction industry, media representatives and well-wishers were also present.