Mohali, Jan. 24 -- In a move that has brought fresh financial trouble for nearly 7,000 plot holders of the IT City scheme, the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) has decided to impose enhancement charges to the tune of Rs.7,845 per square yard. Enhancement charges are the additional compensation paid to landowners for the land acquired by the authority, which is later recovered from plot allottees. The IT City project was developed as a major technology hub in 2010-11. It is spread over nearly 1,500 acres in Sectors 66-B, 82-A, 83-A and 101-A, and has residential, commercial and industrial pots, which were sold over the years through auctions at prevailing market rates. A letter for enhancement of recovery charges was issued by the chief accounts officer to the land officer (plots) on January 22, directing that immediate steps be taken to recover the additional amount from allottees and transferees in accordance with the approved guidelines. In the case of unsold properties, the letter states, the revised rate will be added to the reserve price whenever these are disposed of through auction or allotment. The announcement comes close on the heels of Punjab cabinet's decision on December 31, 2025, to slash the enhancement charges for residential areas in Mohali's Sectors 76 to 80. GMADA had initially issued notices seeking Rs.3,164 per square metre fromallottees. But the rate was first reduced to Rs.2,325 per square metre and subsequently to Rs.2,216 per square metre, which has now been approved as the final payable amount. In this case, the Supreme Court had in 2013 ordered GMADA to pay Rs.300 crore as enhanced compensation to landowners. The authority had obtained undertakings from allottees, agreeing to pay enhancement charges - in the range of Rs.700 to Rs.850 per square yard, depending on plot size, at the time. As the GMADA failed to issue formal recovery notices for more than 10 years, the interest component alone swelled to about Rs.288 crore, pushing the total demand from allottees to nearly Rs.600 crore....