Turning all the old buildings and reconstructing them into tall towers is slowly catching up in Thane, Mumbai. Quite often, people are cheated by developers during this process due to their ignorance. Mr. Srinivas Ghaisas, a legal advisor from Thane, recently held a discussion with those attending the Aatre Katta session in Thane, where he recommended the following steps to avoid getting duped:

•When you decide to reconstruct the building, call an architect to survey the place and estimate the floors that can be increased and other technical details

•Go for tendering process while selecting a builder

•Shortlist the tender and inquire into information given by the builder in the tenders, most of the work mentioned by them in these tenders did not exist

He also added that, "Take a written offer from the builder and then decide your terms in the society meeting. If the builder is building an extra six floors, it is your right to enjoy some profit earned by the builder. Make your own development agreement and shortlist the demands. Decide which demands are negotiable and which demands are non-negotiable and which could be negotiated. Make a final agreement based on the offer given by the builder and the final demands put forth by you. When the builder knows that he is dealing with knowledge able people he will agree to most of the demands put forth by you."