Gurgaon: In the wake of sealing and demolition drives in the DLF phases, the developer has said it had sent multiple reminders about the commercial units operating from residential units to the town planner.Documents accessed by TOI show correspondence between the two parties from months ago.DLF Utilities had repeatedly put the town-planning enforcement machinery on notice about illegal commercialisation across DLF City’s four phases — months before the ongoing crackdown on unauthorised PGs and commercial activity in residential areas.The number stands at over a staggering 2,000 illegal commercial units, while PGs’ number stood at over 1,600, the documents show.Three separate complaints sent by DLF Utilities to the district town planner — between Jan 2025 and June 2026 — reveal that the developer’s utility arm had identified hundreds of properties being used as PGs, guesthouses, offices, shops, clinics and other commercial establishments in residential plots.The latest crackdown, therefore, may represent not the discovery of a new problem but a delayed response to a problem that had been formally documented — and repeatedly flagged to the enforcement authorities — for well over a year.The key issue now is whether the authorities acted on DLF’s lists, and if so, what action was taken against the properties identified in them.The most striking document is a 47-page annexure accompanying DLF Utilities’ complaint dated Jan 21, 2025. Its PG section runs up to serial number 1,607, with individual house numbers and the number of floors/use recorded against them.The list includes properties described as five-, six-, seven- and even eight-floor PGs, besides entries combining PGs with shops, offices, gyms, hotels and other establishments.The same annexure separately lists other alleged unauthorised commercial uses, including guesthouses, offices, clinics, showrooms, gyms, hospitals, restaurants and shops.The final page carries a handwritten total of 2,053 for Phases I to IV, indicating the scale of commercial activity DLF had put before the authorities.DLF’s Jan complaint was not merely a list. It alleged that the construction and commercialisation were in violation of approved plans and had pushed population density beyond sustainable levels, putting pressure on water, sewerage, storm-water lines, electricity and roads.The company also said it had received complaints from RWAs and residents and warned that the situation posed risks to life and property.Yet the correspondence did not end there.On Oct 6, 2025, DLF Utilities again wrote to the district town planner (enforcement), stating that owners in DLF City Phases I-IV were carrying out commercial activities without approval from the competent authority.The company specifically referred to showrooms, shops, offices, guesthouses and eateries and said these were allegedly in violation of approved plans.Then, on June 12, DLF sent another complaint to the same enforcement authority, this time specifically enclosing a list of unauthorised/illegal commercial activity.It again identified guesthouses, PGs, shops, restaurants/eateries and offices and urged the authorities to take “strict actions”, warning of risks to life and property and the possibility of a major disaster.DLF Utilities Ltd’s head (facility management & security) Nitya Mohan told TOI, “DLF Utilities has been consistently flagging suspected unauthorised construction and commercial activities, including PGs and guesthouses operating from residential properties, to the competent authorities. Our property-wise submissions were intended to assist enforcement agencies in examining violations and taking appropriate action. The concerns are particularly serious where overcrowding and unauthorised construction may put additional pressure on essential infrastructure and create safety risks for residents. We believe that verification of sanctioned plans, permitted use, structural and fire-safety requirements should be undertaken by the competent authorities wherever necessary. DLF Utilities will continue to support the authorities through documentation, monitoring and coordination to help safeguard residents, infrastructure and the residential character of DLF City.”The documents raise a larger question over the enforcement timeline: If the authorities had received detailed property-wise information from DLF as early as Jan 2025, why did large-scale enforcement against illegal PGs and commercial establishments gather pace only in 2026?They also suggest that the problem was not confined to a handful of recent conversions. The annexures contain property-wise entries spread across DLF City, including clusters where entire stretches of residential plots appear to have been converted into PG accommodation.
