Let there be sunshine!
We may be in the throes of the scorching Indian summer but don’t let the sun go down on your home furniture. SAURABH MALIK lists some simple solutions to contain summer damage

IF you have day curtains and faded sofa sets, you know exactly what is being talked about. This is not all. Dripping bathing and swimsuits casually tossed on the rocking chair, wet towel indifferently left behind on the stately double bed and sun-screened arms on the rests can take not just the gleam away by spoiling the polish, but also leave stains on your living room furniture. It can also harden dirt on the furniture, leaving it with a neglected appearance. Oh yes, it even leads to faster wearing away of the wood.

But worry not! You can keep the furnishings bright and shining with simple tips that allow you to keep furniture spotlessly clean, while still letting your kids enjoy summer vacation and the season in the sun. So, if you wish to enjoy outdoors, while respecting the indoors, pay heed.

To begin with, cordon off your living room as far as possible — at least keep it out of bounds for children rushing in after swimming sessions or even some cricket practice in the sun.

Go in for terrycloth robes for the family if the members love frequent dips in the pool. It is lightweight and protects the furnishings from water, sweat and even sunscreen.

“Children will be children,” says Niranjana Sharma, principal of Shimla-based Bachpan, a playschool. “When the weather is good, they ride bikes all over and play ball in the street until its dark. When it’s rainy, it’s time to soak in pleasure. And it all shows on your furniture. So, divert them to an area other than the living room by restricting direct access.” Have no reservations! They will get used to the new scheme of things in a day or so.

But where do you allow them to spend the cooling off period? “If your kitchen has durable chairs or stools where your little ones can try their hand at lemonade, allow them to have their air drying sessions there,” suggests Sharma

A day of sweaty play can also be followed by some rest on plastic furniture in the playroom. “You can get it from almost everywhere. In Chandigarh, the stuff is readily available in Industrial Area. Even the Sector 34 furniture market has it,” says Chandigarh-based furniture dealer Deepak Joshi.

In any case, make it a rule they have to stay out of the living room until they are no more high, yet dry. Also encourage them to hit the showers. Ask them to take a bath before they venture out into the living room for a date with the protagonist of their favorite telly star.

“Another important step is to place a nice doormat for the younglings to brush clean their feet before they enter,” says inside outside expert Sarita Chauhan. “You can get a fun, summer-themed, mat. Just remind the children to brush off on the mat after a trek in the hilly terrains of Himachal Pradesh or a desert survey around Jaipur. Let it become a habit.”  

Now that you have taken care of your sitting gear from the kids barging in after a day’s play, look at your actions. Are you letting the sunshine on the furniture and the walls, literally?

Chandigarh-based Sharmas realised the upshot only after it was a bit too late. Averse to the idea of allowing synthetic daylight thrown by electricity bulbs to flood the living room, they let the natural light percolate through sheer curtains. Only later did they become conscious of the “fainter” sofa sets. The infiltrating light did not spare even the wall painting. So say no to day curtains till the summer sun threatens to play havoc.

“People also do not realise the sunscreen they use to protect themselves from the darkening sunrays makes the well-tanned furniture lighter,” says beautician-cum-makeup artiste Bindu Sharma. “The greasy sun block does rub against the armrests and damages the surface polish. So, head for the washroom after a day out and clean your arms, at least to protect the furniture.”

Just remember the age-old adage — An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Protect your furnishings from the summer grime. It is any day easier than going in for Operation Cleanup later. Have a happy and furniture-safe summer!

Of Religion & Real(i)ty
Unprecedented development in sleepy Jammu tehsil after it turns spiritual hub, land prices spiral in decade
Ashutosh Sharma

IT is a marriage of religion and real estate and what a party it is turning out to be near Sunder Bani town, some 80 km from the winter capital Jammu on the Jammu-Poonch highway. Shiv Kashi, some 2 km from Sunder Bani, is fast emerging as a spiritual hub. In the past 10 years, land prices in the sleepy town have jumped 14 times.

Religious places have always attracted worshippers to buy property, be it Varanasi, Haridwar, Ayodhya or Mathura. Known by the name of Bhajwal, the place had some scattered homes until Swami Vishvatma Anand Saraswati’s ashram came up here. What was followed was unprecedented development that has changed the face of Sunder Bani completely.

Besides the ashram and imposing temples, the saint also developed institutions aimed at imparting spiritual as well as value-based education in the entire area. The institutions include a degree college, BEd College, Paramedical College, CBSE affiliated Higher Secondary School and a Sanskrit Vidyalaya.

The area witnesses heavy inflow of religious tourists and followers of the saint in thousands from all over the country on special occasions. Pilgrims en route to Budda Amarnath Ji in Poonch prefer to camp at the ashram owing to grand arrangements for them every year in the wake of yatra.

Though people from outside the state are not allowed to purchase land in view of Article 370 due to special constitutional status for the state, agricultural land is being purchased by locals from surrounding areas of the tehsil only for commercial or residential purposes.

Local revenue officials say that prices of land in Sunder Bani tehsil have always been higher than Rajouri and Poonch districts because of its location. “To begin with, the town was the gateway to the twin hilly districts. Now, it is fast emerging as an educational hub,” they say. According to revenue official Mohammad Aslam Mirza, it is impossible to get land around the ashram. “Before the ashram was constructed, land price was less than Rs 1 lakh a kanal. Even if a plot is up for sale, the buyer will have to sell off Rs 14 lakh for a kanal and even more.”

The town is already overcrowded there is no scope for further expansion, he says. “People from surrounding areas keen on making the town their home have only one option, which is why they are shelling out extra bucks to buy land near the ashram,” says Mirza, adding that Shiv Kashi does not fall under the jurisdiction of the municipality.

Situated in the lap of nature, flanked by hills covered with lush pines on its southern side, the ashram offers a panoramic view. People are also being allured by the serene environs of the area, far from the hustle-bustle of town and free from pollution.

“We are developing a lake as a major attraction for visitors. Apart from it, huge road infrastructure is also being built in and around the ashram. Several projects are also in the pipeline,” says Chuni Lal, an executive member of the ashram’s management committee. “Soon an ayurvedic college would come up in the ashram besides several other add up courses would also be introduced with equal focus on modern education as well as ancient way of living.”

“Prices are likely to shoot up further as the ashram is still under construction. Due to its unique location the place is going to be a major destination from the point of view of religious tourism,” maintain locals, showering praises on the saint.

Mega residential projects coming up around Baba Ramdev’s Peetanjali Peeth near Roorkee
Akash Ghai

MAJOR development is on the cards in the periphery of the education hub of Uttarakhand, especially the Haridwar-Roorkee stretch.

In the 30-km stretch, which boasts of the world-renowned Peetanjali Peeth of Yog Guru Baba Ramdev and some big education institutes, work on several mega residential projects like Santoor City, Anand City, Vyan Ganga and Vardhmaan City has already begun.

Local property dealer A.K. Saini said that special permission by authorities allowing builders from outside the state to purchase large chunks of land for their projects would prove as a stimulant to development. “Earlier, an outsider could purchase only up to 250 yards land in the state. But now builders and colonisers from any part of the country can register the land in their name after getting their projects approved,” says Saini.

Many big names in the real estate sector like Arjun Dev, Ansal and Sahara Group have already shown interest and launched projects. “Things were looking up when the global meltdown occurred. Like everywhere else, work was halted, but now work on many projects is ready to start,” says Raj Kumar Saini, a local coloniser.

Interestingly, the coming up of these projects has had no effect on prices in the city. Giving reasons, Raj Kumar says, “Already land prices in the town are going through the roof. Plus, local residents are not investing in the projects. Mostly, the main customers of plots and flats of these projects are the affluent from metros like Mumbai and Delhi, who want to have their own place near India’s Religious Capital, Haridwar, or tourist haven Mussoorie,” he says.

Confirms Saini, “Even builders or big groups also seem least interested in publicising their projects at the local level. They have their own system as most of their bookings and businesses take place over the Internet.”

Tax tips
If it is part of your riches, it will invite wealth tax
S.C. Vasudeva

Q. What are the assets that fall within the purview of leviability of wealth tax? Please advise. — Deepak Kumar

A. Assets considered to be part of the net wealth of an assessee for levy of wealth tax are as under:

n Any guesthouse, residential house, commercial property and/or farmhouse situated within 25 km from the local limits of any municipality or a cantonment board but excluding:

- a house meant exclusively for residential purposes and which is allotted by a company to an employee or an officer or a director who is in whole-time employment, having gross annual salary of less than Rs.5,00,000,

- any residential house forming part of stock-in-trade,

- any house for commercial purposes (i.e., commercial property) which forms part of stock-in-trade.

n Any house that is occupied by the assessee for the purposes of any business or profession carried on by him,

n Any residential property that has been let-out for a minimum period of 300 days in the previous year; and

n Any property in the nature of commercial establishments or complexes;

n Motorcars, other than those used in assessee’s hiring business or used as stock-in-trade,

n Jewellery, bullion, and furniture, utensils or any other article made wholly partly of gold, silver, platinum or any other precious metal or any alloy containing one or more of such precious metals, other than those used as stock-in-trade by the assessee,

n Yachts, boats and aircrafts, other than those used by the assessee for commercial purposes,

n Urban land, being land situated in any area, within the jurisdiction of a municipality or a cantonment board which has a population of not less than 10,000; or within 8 km of local limits of such municipality or a cantonment board, as the Central Government may notify.

However, urban land shall not include:

n Land on which construction of a building is not permissible under any law or the land on which building is constructed with the approval of the appropriate authority,

n Any unused land held by the assessee for industrial purposes for a period of two years from the date of its acquisition by him, and

n Any land held by the assessee as stock-in-trade for a period of ten years from the date of its acquisition by him;

- Cash in hand, in excess of Rs 50,000, of individuals and Hindu Undivided Families and in the case of other persons any amount not recorded in the books of account.

It may be added that there are exemptions in respect of certain assets that are contained in Section 5 of the Wealth-tax Act 1957. One of such exemptions is one house or part of a house or a plot of land not exceeding 500 sq. meters belonging to an individual or a HUF.

The assets mentioned above except those exempted under Section 5 of the Wealth-tax Act 1957 are chargeable to wealth tax without any exemption. The other assets such as shares, debentures, deposits, units and loans advanced are not liable to wealth-tax.

Ancestral property: Consult state law

Q. What are the legal formalities for surrendering one’s share in ancestral, joint family and father’s self-earned properties? Can such surrendering be withdrawn? If so, when and how?

n Partition in respect of ancestral property was done on October 1, 1980. Will married daughters get equal share in this case? — Sunil Jindal

A. Your queries are replied hereunder:

n The person surrendering his share in a property can do so by executing a relinquishment deed. It should be possible to withdraw the same before an effect is given to such a deed.

n The Hindu Succession Act 1956 was amended w.e.f. September 9, 2005 to provide for a daughter to be considered as a co-parcener and thus entitled to a share in the ancestral property equivalent to a son. As per facts given in the query, the partition of the ancestral property, having taken place much before the amendment, in my opinion the amended law would not be applicable retrospectively and the law prevailing as on the date of partition will have to be applied. 

On that basis, married daughters should not be entitled to get a share in ancestral property as per the provisions of the unamended Act. It may be added that in some states, law on this particular issue had been amended earlier than September 9, 2005 to give a share to the women in such a property. You may, therefore, consult state law on the subject before taking any action in this regard.

Acquire property in joint names

Q. I am planning to buy a house with the help of bank finance. I would like to take a joint loan, as my wife is also a government employee. As the total tax rebate is Rs 1.5 lakh in case of housing loan, if both of us want to take rebate in the income tax, what should be the formalities as far as joint loan case is concerned? Please guide me in detail. — Rajesh Kumar

A. Your queries are replied hereunder:

n The maximum deduction allowable under Section 80C of the Income-tax Act 1961 (the Act) is Rs 1 lakh. The deduction, as allowable, covers contributions towards certain specified schemes as well as the repayment of installment towards loan borrowed for purchase or construction of a residential house. The deduction allowable is not Rs.1.5 lakh, as mentioned in the query.

n The formalities with regard to raising of loan would depend on the requirements of the bank from which finance is being raised.

n It would be advisable to execute documents that would indicate that both you and your wife have borrowed the amount for construction of the house. It would be, therefore, essential that the property be acquired in joint names. Further, amount borrowed by each one of you and the repayment of the loan installments should be fixed separately. The installments should be paid by each one of you from your respective bank accounts. This would enable both of you to claim the deduction under section 80C of the Act in respect of the installments paid towards the repayment of loan so raised. 

To save CGT, invest balance in six months

Q. I sold a house in February 2009 and made capital gain of about Rs 75 lakh. I invested Rs 50 lakh before March 2009 in bonds of Rural Electrification Corporation Limited. Am I allowed to invest the balance amount of Rs 25 lakh in the next year? — Vijay Kumar

A. Section 54EC of the Act provides for an exemption from the taxability of capital gain arising from transfer of a long-term capital asset in case investment of the said capital gain is made in the specified assets within six months of the date of sale of a capital asset up to Rs 50 lakh in a financial year. The bonds of Rural Electrification Corporation Limited are one of the specified assets under the said section.

A plain reading of Section 54EC of the Income Tax Act, therefore, gives an indication that in case of a situation similar to yours, if another investment of Rs 25 lakh is made in the specified asset in the next financial year within the said months, it should be possible to claim the exemption from taxability in respect of the capital gain to the extent of an amount of Rs 75 lakh.

In my opinion, therefore, you have good case of getting the desired relief in case the investment of balance Rs 25 lakh is made within six months of the date of sale of the house. 

Do execute Agreement to Sell

Q. I have a plot of land that I intend to sell. On an enquiry from the market, I have been told that it would take about two to three months for the final sale deed to be executed. The brokers have also informed me that a receipt for advance payment would be issued to me that would be sufficient for execution of sale deed within the period mentioned in the said receipt. Is it essential to execute an agreement to sell because the brokers have given me an indication that there is no necessity for the same? — Sunil Gupta

A. It is always advisable to execute an Agreement to Sell. It should be executed on a non-judicial stamp paper and should be signed by both the seller and the buyer. It is legally valid and admissible as evidence. An agreement to sell forms the basis for drafting the sale/conveyance deed. The written agreement is always preferable from a legal perspective because it can be legally enforced in case of breach of the conditions specified in the agreement by either of the parties.

An Agreement to Sell can become a very important document during property acquisition. Further, such a document facilitates smooth completion of the transaction without any dispute. In my opinion an Agreement to Sell protects the interest of both the parties and therefore should be executed in all cases.

GREEN HOUSE
Accessories do for your green patch the same they do for your wardrobe. Let your imagination run wild!
Dressing up the garden
Satish Narula

EVERYONE who has even a small green patch that he or she has nourished is proud of it. The excellence, however, comes with imagination. There is a range of garden decorations and adornments available. Make your choice depending upon the space and your personal preferences and be one up on the neighbours!

Choose from seats, small water containers and ‘stones’ made of fiberglass, statues, animal figures, barrels and cisterns, designer pots and pergolas. Adding a statue to a garden is like adding life to it. Such structures arouse curiosity and break the monotony. These are also the things of emphasis and draw attention. These may also be used as a theme in the garden, like a resting mermaid would complete the scene near a water body. A bathing beauty near a waterfall or a Buddha in meditation in a garden with Japanese garden style would create that ambience. A laughing Buddha, a toad and some similar statues are now-a-days favourite with Vaastu followers.

In case you are installing a statue, make sure it is not one of those cheap and gaudy cement ones moulded by untrained hands and painted in garish colours. Very attractive figurines are now available at reasonable rates.

If you stay on the upper floors, fret not. Beautifying the garden is not only the prerogative of those living on the ground floor! You can buy beautiful Plaster of Paris statues and animal figures and strategically place them between pots. They might not last long, but then these come very affordable and replacing them frequently presents a unique opportunity to change the theme of the balcony or terrace every few months!

Another very attractive adornment in the garden is a pergola. Besides indicating the entry point to the garden, it supports climbers depending upon the purpose – be it Jhumka Bel, jasmine or Honeysuckle for fragrance or Adenocalyma, Golden Shower or Clerodendron for a riot of colour. Pergolas are made of angle iron and wire mesh to support the vine. It may have two or four legs depending upon space available and also whether it is being used as an entrance to a small garden or at the junction of two paths in a larger space.

A pergola is usually kept at least seven to seven-and-a-half feet high so that the climber trained on it does not interfere with the movement of an individual. Seeing the accompanying picture, you must be wondering why the height in this case is much less (the climber trained on it has further reduced it). In fact, I designed this six-and-a-half-feet pergola as the entrance to the herbal garden at the residence of the then Vice-President of India, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. Though he himself is a staggering six feet plus, I intentionally chose this height. Our scriptures mention that anyone entering an herbal garden should bow their heads in reverence! Since the pergola was at the entrance to the herbal garden, the climber trained on it was Giloye, a medicinal vine that has ornamental foliage as well.

This column appears fortnightly. The writer is a senior horticulturist at PAU and can be reached at satishnarula@yahoo.co.in