Despite Rs 580 crore of public money being used to construct an eight-storey parking facility, including a basement, in Noida, only 10 percent of it is open to the public. Most of it is being used as a warehouse by dealers of major automobile brands, from MG to Tata.
Inaugurated by UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath in 2020 and constructed by the Noida authority for the “convenience of the public”, the operations and maintenance of the multilevel parking were handed over in 2022 to MG Infra Solutions, a private player, through a bidding process.
This company claimed that the public demand was not enough to maintain costs and rented out most of the space with official “permission”.
But when Newslaundry visited the facility next to the Botanical Garden metro station in Sector 38A, the ground floor and a part of the basement designated for the general public were crammed. And over 30 cars belonging to commuters were haphazardly parked on ramps on other spots within the premises.
Of the parking lot’s two entrances, only one was open to the public while another was being used to park godown vehicles. The stretch leading to the facility was lined with trailers carrying large containers, which were being used to ferry showroom cars without number plates.
The building’s basement was being used to store Honda cars and by electronic cab service BluSmart for a charging station. The first floor was being used for Toyota, Skoda and Datsun cars, blanketed with dust. The second floor only had Tata vehicles, while the third floor was for vehicle trading platform Cars24, which also has a small office on the same floor. The fourth floor was reserved for MG and Kia automobiles.
The fifth and sixth floors are closed, lying unused.
‘Always a space issue here’
Several commuters at the metro station told Newslaundry they were unable to find parking space. Vishal Tripathi, a 40-year-old IT professional who takes the metro to reach his office in Delhi from his home in Greater Noida, claimed he can’t find parking space every day. “When I reach before 12 pm, I find a spot. But the parking lot will be full later.”
Ravi Singh, who travels to Delhi from his home in Noida for business, claimed, “There is always a space issue here. The parking is often full and we have to park our cars in the inner lane. When even that is filled, we have to park outside and go.”
A worker handing out parking tickets showed his ticketing machine to say that cars belonging to commuters had been parked away from the designated space because there was no space inside. A total of 770 cars, 94 motorcycles and 170 commercial vehicles were parked inside the building which can house over 7,000 vehicles.
Sunil Sharma, the company’s operations manager, said, “MG Infra Solutions has to give Rs 18 to 20 lakh to the Noida authority as rent each month. But not a lot of cars came to this parking so most of its space was empty and the company was incurring losses. That is why we gave this space to car dealers. We have furnished information to the Noida authority and obtained its permission.”
The Botanical Garden metro station is among the busiest metro stations in NCR considering that many use it to interchange trains. Over 2 lakh passengers reportedly use it every day for interchange purposes.
Noida has six multilevel parking facilities but the one in Sector 38A is the largest to have been constructed by the government, followed by the one in Sector 18. Parking charges for two-wheelers are Rs 10 for the first hour and Rs 5 for every additional hour; for four-wheelers, it is Rs 20 per hour, Rs 10 for each additional hour, with the maximum daily charge capped at Rs 80.
Rise in car inventory amid slump in automobile sales
Gate passes with the car’s engine number are required to move cars that are meant to be warehoused at the facility.
The gate passes for MG cars mentioned dealer Crystal Autocars Limited while those for Kia cars mentioned Allied Motors. Newslaundry could not ascertain the dealers using the space for the other automobile brands.
The staff present on all these floors refused to speak to Newslaundry.
The warehousing of these vehicles comes amid a rise in automobile inventory and a slump in sales – retail trade fell by 6.8 percent in June, the steepest drop in two-and-a-half years. According to the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations, car inventory in India reached alarming levels in August, but dealers are hoping the situation will improve with the upcoming festive season.
Violation of rules
But the multilevel parking in Sector 38A may also be in violation of multilevel parking rules that have been defined in chapter 8 of the New Okhla Industrial Development Area Building Regulations, 2010.
While the rules say that only 25 percent of the ground area can be used for commercial purposes, most of the levels of the facility are being used for commercial activity. While they state that only the top floor of a building can be used as an office, the third floor houses the Car24 office. And though they point out that the basement can only be used for parking, the Noida facility’s basement is also being used as a charging station.
Another clause notes that “models should be worked out to encourage private sector initiative without commercial component”.
‘Under cognisance’
Vijay Rawal, the deputy general manager (civil) of the Noida authority, said, “This matter is under cognisance of the Noida authority. Most of the space here remained empty which is why this step was taken. The contracts, however, are between MG Infra Solutions and car company’s agencies. Noida authority is not a party in it.”
Rawal did not respond to queries on the specifics of the agreement with MG Infra to manage the parking, whether it included a clause on commercial use, and if the dealer agencies obtained an NOC from the Noida authority.
Newslaundry sent a questionnaire with eight queries to Noida authority CEO Lokesh M and MG Infra owner Pravin Gupta. We reached out to them repeatedly over seven days for comment, including by visiting their offices. This report will be updated if a response is received.
Asked about the Cars24 office, Sunil Sharma of MG Infra Solutions said, “What is wrong in it? If such a big company will keep its property somewhere then it will keep its people for its maintenance and upkeep.”
Newslaundry sent questions to Cars24, BluSmart and all the dealers named in this report. This report will be updated if a response is received.
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