68B. Withdrawal from the Fund for the purchase of a dwelling house/flat or for the construction of a dwelling house including the acquisition of a suitable site for the purpose.- (1) The Commissioner, or where so authorised by the Commissioner, any officer subordinate to him, may on an application from a member in such form as may be prescribed and subject to the conditions prescribed in this paragraph sanction from the amount standing to the credit of the member in the fund, an withdrawal— (a) for purchasing a dwelling house/flat, including a flat in a building owned jointly with others (outright or on hire purchase basis), or for constructing dwelling house including the acquisi¬tion of a suitable site for the purpose from the Central Govern¬ment, the State Government, a co-operative society, and institution, a trust, a local body or a Housing Finance Corpora¬tion (hereinafter referred to as the agency/agencies); or (b) for purchasing a dwelling site for the purpose of construc¬tion of a dwelling house or a ready-built dwelling house/flat from any individual; (bb) for purchasing dwelling house/flat on ownership basis from a promoter governed by the provisions of any Flats or Apart¬ments Ownership Act or by any other analogous or similar law of the Central Government or the State Government as may be in force in any State or area for the time being and who intends to con¬struct or constructs dwelling house or block of flats and the member is required to pay to the said promoter in advance for financing the said construction of the house/flat: Provided that the member has entered into an agreement with the promoter as may be required under the Flats or Apartments Owner¬ship Act or any other analogous or similar law of the Central Government or State Government which may be in force in any State or any area and the said agreement is registered under the Indian Registration Act, 1908; (c) for the construction of a dwelling house on a site owned by the member or the spouse of the member or jointly by the member and the spouse, or for completing/continuing the construction of a dwelling house already commenced by the member or the spouse, on such site or for purchase of a house/flat in the joint name of the member and the spouse under clauses (a) and (b) above. Explanation 1: In this paragraph, the expression ‘co-operative society’ means a society registered or deemed to be registered under the Co-operative Societies Act, 1912 (2 of 1912), or under any other law for the time being in force in any State relating to co-operative societies. Explanation: (2) (a) For the purpose of purchase of a site for construc¬tion of house thereon, the amount of withdrawal shall not exceed the member’s basic wages and dearness allowance for twenty-four months or the member’s own share of contributions, together with the employer’s share of contributions with interest thereon or the actual cost towards the acquisition of the dwelling site, whichever is the least. (b) For the purpose of acquisition of a ready built house/flat or for construction of a house/flat, the withdrawal shall not exceed the member’s basic wages and dearness allowance for thirty-six months or the member’s own share of contributions, together with the employer’s share of contributions, with interest thereon, or the total cost of construction, whichever is the least. (3)(a) No withdrawal under this paragraph shall be granted unless: (i) the member has completed five years’ membership of the Fund; (ii) the member’s own share of contributions with interest thereon in the amount standing to his credit in the Fund is not less than one thousand rupees; (iii) a declaration from the member that the dwelling site or the dwelling house/flat or the house under construction is free from encumbrances and the same is under title of the member and/or the spouse : Provided that where a dwelling site or a dwelling house/flat is mortgaged to any of the agencies referred to in clause (a) of sub-paragraph (1), solely for having obtained funds for the pur¬chase of a dwelling house/flat or for the construction of a dwelling house including the requisition of a suitable site for the purpose, such a dwelling site or a dwelling house/flat, as the case may be, shall not be deemed to be an encumbered proper¬ty: Provided further that a land acquired on a perpetual lease or on lease for a period of not less than 30 years for constructing a dwelling house/flat, or a house/flat built on such a leased land, shall also not be deemed to be an encumbered property: Provided also that where the site of the dwelling house/flat is held in the name of any agency, referred to in clause (a) of sub-paragraph (1) and the allottee is precluded from transferring or otherwise disposing of, the house/flat, without the prior approv¬al of such agency, the mere fact that the allottee does not have absolute right of ownership of the house/flat and the site is held in the name of the agency, shall not be a bar to the giving of a withdrawal under clause (a) of sub-paragraph (1), if the other conditions mentioned in this paragraph are satisfied. (b) No withdrawal shall be granted for purchasing a share in a joint property or for constructing a house on a site owned jointly except on a site owned jointly with the spouse. (4) Subject to the limitation prescribed in sub-paragraph (2)— (a) where the withdrawal is for the purchase of a dwelling house/flat or a dwelling site from an agency referred to in clause (a) of sub-paragraph (1), the payment of withdrawal shall not be made to the member but shall be made direct to the agency in one or more instalments, as may be authorised by the member; (b) where the withdrawal is for the construction of a dwelling house, it may be sanctioned in such number of instalments as the Commissioner or where so authorised by the Commissioner, any officer, subordinate to him, thinks fit; (d) where the withdrawal is for purchasing a dwelling house/flat on ownership basis from a promoter as referred to in clause (bb) of sub-paragraph (1), the payment or withdrawal shall be made to the member in one or more instalments as may be re¬quired to be paid by the said promoter and as authorised by the member. Explanation: “Promoter” includes a person who constructs or causes to be constructed a block or building of flats or apartments for the purpose of selling some or all of them to other persons or to a company, co-operative society or other associa¬tion of persons and his assignees and where the person who builds and the person who sells are different persons, the term “promot¬er” includes both. (5) Where a withdrawal is sanctioned for the construction of a dwelling house, the construction shall commence within six months of the withdrawal of the first instalment and shall be com¬pleted within twelve months of the withdrawal of the final instalment. Where the withdrawal is sanctioned for the pur¬chase of a dwelling house/flat or for the acquisition of a dwelling site, the purchase or acquisition, as the case may be, shall be completed within six months of the withdrawal of the amount: Provided that this provision shall not be applicable in case of purchase of a dwelling house/flat on hire-purchase basis and in cases where a dwelling site is to be acquired or houses are to be constructed by a co-operative society on behalf of its members with a view to their allotment to the members. (6) Except in the cases specified in sub-paragraphs (7) and (7A), no further withdrawal shall be admissible to a member under this paragraph. (7) An additional withdrawal upto twelve months basic wages and dearness allowance or the member’s own share of contributions with interest thereon, in the amount standing to his credit in the Fund, whichever is less, may be granted in one instalment only, for additions, substantial alterations or improvements necessary to the dwelling house owned by the member or by the spouse or jointly by the member and the spouse : Provided that the withdrawal shall be admissible only after a period of five years from the date of completion of the dwelling house. (7A) A further withdrawal equivalent to the amount of difference between the amount of withdrawal admissible to a member under sub-paragraph (2) above as on the date of fresh application and the amount of withdrawal that was drawn by a member under this paragraph any time during 6 years preceding 3rd October, 1981, may be granted to such a member (i) who had availed of the earlier withdrawal for purchase of a dwelling site and has now proposed to construct a dwelling house on the land so purchased or (ii) who had availed of the earlier withdrawal for making initial payment towards the allotment/purchase of a house/flat from any agency as referred to in clause (a) of sub-paragraph (1) above and has now proposed to avail of a withdrawal for completing the transaction to get the sole ownership of the house/flat so purchased or (iii) who had availed of the earlier withdrawal for construction of a house but could not complete the construction in the time due to lack of funds. (7B) A further withdrawal up to twelve months’ basic wages and dearness allowance or member’s own share of contribution with interest thereon in his account, whichever is the least, may be granted for addition, alteration, improvement or repair of the dwelling house owned by the member or by the spouse or jointly by the member and the spouse, after ten years of withdrawal, under sub-paragraph (7). (8) Omitted. (9) (a) If the withdrawal granted under this paragraph exceeds the amount actually spent for the purpose for which it was sanctioned, the excess amount shall be refunded by the member to the Fund in one lump sum within thirty days of the finalisation of the purchase, or the completion of the construction of, or necessary additions, alterations or improvements to a dwelling house, as the case may be. The amount so refunded shall be cred¬ited to the employer’s share of contributions in the member’s account in the Fund to the extent of withdrawal granted out of the said share and the balance, if any, shall be credited to the member’s share of contributions in his account. (b) In the event of the member not having been allotted a dwelling site/dwelling house/flat, or in the event of the cancellation of an allotment made to the member and of the refund of the amount by the agency, referred to in clause (a) of sub-paragraph (1) or in the event of the member not being able to acquire the dwelling site or to purchase the dwelling house/flat from any individual or to construct the dwelling house, the member shall be liable to refund to the Fund in one lump sum and in such manner as may be specified by the Commissioner, or where so authorised by the Commissioner, any officer subordinate to him, the amount of withdrawal remitted under this paragraph to him or, as the case may be, to the agency referred to in clause (a) of sub-paragraph (1). The amount so refunded shall be credited to the employer’s share of contributions in the member’s account in the Fund, to the extent of withdrawal granted out of the said share, and the balance, if any, shall be credited to the member’s own share of contributions in his account. (10) If the Commissioner, or where so authorised by the Commissioner, any officer subordinate to him is satisfied that the withdrawal granted under this paragraph has been utilised for a purpose other than that for which it was granted or that the member refused to accept an allotment or to acquire a dwelling site or that the conditions of withdrawal have not been fulfilled or that there is reasonable apprehension that they will not be fulfilled wholly or partly; or that the excess amount will not be refunded in terms of clause (a) of sub-paragraph (9) or that the amount remitted back to the member by any agency re¬ferred to in clause (a) of sub-paragraph (1), will not be refund¬ed in terms of clause (b) of sub-paragraph (9), the Commissioner, or where so authorised by the Commissioner, any officer subordi¬nate to him, shall forthwith take steps to recover the amount due with penal interest thereon at the rate of two per cent per annum from the wages of the member in such number of instalments as the Commissioner, or where so authorised by the Commissioner, any officer subordinate to him, may determine. For the purpose of such recovery the Commissioner or where so authorised by the Commissioner, any officer subordinate to him may direct the employer to deduct such instalment from the wages of the member and on receipt of such direction, the employer shall deduct accordingly. The amount so deducted, shall be remitted by the employer to the Commissioner, or where so authorised by the Commissioner, any officer subordinate to him within such time and in such manner as may be specified in the direction. The amount so refunded, excluding the penal interest, shall be credited to the employer’s share of contributions in the member’s account in the Fund to the extent of withdrawal granted out of the said share and the balance, if any, shall be credited to the member’s own share of contributions in his account. The amount of penal interest shall, however, be credited to the interest suspense account: Provided that the recovery of withdrawal under sub-paragraph (10) shall be restricted to cases where the recovery has been ordered by the sanctioning authority while the member is in service. (11) Where any withdrawal granted under this paragraph has been misused by the member, no further withdrawal shall be granted to him under this paragraph within a period of three years from the date of grant of the said withdrawal or till the full recovery of the amount of the said withdrawal with penal interest thereon, whichever is later. | 
