Luxury, mid-segment houses most demanded in Pune

The affordable alternative to Mumbai’s luxury properties, Pune, has been garnering the interest of buyers for a long time now. Last quarter, the city caught the eyeballs of real estate experts in another parameter.

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As per the Apr-Jun 2015 edition of the Housing Sentiment Index (HSI), a joint initiative by IIM-B and Magicbricks, Pune noted positive sentiments for properties priced in the range of Rs 2-5 crore. It is the only city across the country which has registered the most optimistic sentiments in this price category.

As per HSI, Pune is the best city to invest in, second only to Hyderabad. The main reason can be traced to the fact that a steady housing demand comes from the IT and manufacturing sectors. Also, the relatively affordable pricing compared to Mumbai is also driving Pune’s realty so far.

Mid-segment properties most in demand

HSI indicates that the Rs 40-60 lakh price range is the most preferred category among Pune residents, closely followed by the Rs 20-40 lakh price segment. Over 25 per respondents voted for both the budget segments. However, overall, the sentiments captured for each of these segments remained negative. Thus indicating that despite the availability of affordable residential options, buyers still favour property prices to come down.

As per Magicbricks data, currently, there are over 11,000 property options available that are priced below Rs 40 lakh. In fact, there are over 500 projects offering options in this specific budget range.

Source - ET 

Government plans to shrink Lutyens' Bungalow Zone

Delhi/NCR - The urban development ministry has proposed to reduce the Lutyens' Bungalow Zone in the heart of New Delhi by 5.13 sq km to 23.6 sq km, which if implemented could free up land in one of the most coveted and expensive residential areas in the country. The ministry has proposed to exclude areas like Babar Road, Bengali Market, Sundar Nagar, Jor Bagh, Panchsheel Marg and parts of diplomatic area in Chanakyapuri that were added to LBZ in 2003. When it was first demarcated in 1988, LBZ spanned 25.88 sq km. With the additions in 2003, it grew to 28.73 sq km.

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"Properties will become more affordable in this area going forward as builders will be able to reduce apartment sizes, even as the per sq ft remains the same or increases, bringing the overall ticket size down," said Ashwinder Raj Singh, chief executive officer-residential services at real estate services firm JLL India.

The Delhi Urban Arts Commission has proposed to restrict LBZ close to the original boundary envisaged by the British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens in 1912 while removing the transformed, commercialised areas and modern colonies which do not bear any semblance to the original character of the area while retaining the green areas which were included in the zone in 1988.

The commission on August 12 submitted a report to the urban development ministry that included a proposal to bring back the premises of the Supreme Court of India which was excluded from LBZ in 2003. The ministry has proposed floor area ratio (FAR), or the gross floor area permitted on a site, of 20 with 12.50% ground coverage, while in the present guidelines FAR is not specified. It has proposed that basement be allowed within the building line, only for household storage and parking. The building is to be restricted to a height of 12 metres and the number of dwelling units will range from one to four, depending on the size of the plot. 

Source - Economic Times, Delhi/NCR

East Delhi to soon get 8,000 flats in its two smart cities

Delhi/NCR - The east side of the city is all set to get smart. Starting early next year, two new infrastructure projects offering 8,000 flats are coming up in Karkardooma and Trilokpuri. To be built on TOD (transit-oriented development) guidelines, both the projects will give commercial as well as residential spaces. While the Karkardooma project will have 5,000 flats, at Trilokpuri—where the flats will come up right opposite Sanjay Lake—3,000 will be up for grabs. Also tagged as smart cities, the complexes will be built near Metro stations and will have landscaped parks and green areas. The buildings, too, will be totally green with complete recycling of waste, including plastic. 

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The projects are being undertaken by National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC), a PSU. They will be completed in five years, said NBCC head Anoop Kumar Mittal. NBCC, which will work on the projects in phases, plans to start sale of flats of the first phase by next year, said Mittal. Work on the Karkardooma project is going to start from March 2016 and that on the Trilokpuri project, also called the Lake View Complex, will start from February 2016. The cost of the Karkardooma project is around Rs 5,000 crore while that of the Trilokpuri project is Rs 2,000 crore, he added.

"Both the projects are in critical stages of planning and design. We have already identified the basic plan, including the number of flats that will be on offer, along with the commercial segment of the projects. Both will have an iconic, signature building of 100 storeys that will have both commercial and residential spaces," Mittal said. That's not all.

The project will be a green complex. It will follow the zero-discharge principle. All sewage generated within the project will be treated or recycled in-house. There will be no surface parking. "We will ensure that there is minimum vehicular movement," said the NBCC chief. Interestingly, the zero waste management is being undertaken by NBCC in its previous project too—the government flats built in New Moti Bagh. "All the waste, including solid waste, in the New Moti Bagh project is recycled by NBCC. In these two projects, even plastic will be recycled and converted into cooking gas," said Mittal.

Apart from the 100-storey signature towers, other towers within the complex will have 10-30 storeys. Work on the Karkardooma project will take five years to complete and the Trilokpuri project will take four years to complete. They will also provide retail space, a five-acre park, sculptures, a laser park and a circular skywalk. According to NBCC, the EWS housing will be largely subsidized. Other units in the semi-luxury, middle-class and luxury housing, serviced apartments etc will be sold to the public like any private development. "NBCC will maintain the complex for 30 years," said Mittal.

Source - The Times of India, Delhi/NCR

30 Gujarat cities covered under 'Housing For All'

Ahmedabad - Thirty Gujarat cities have been selected by the central government under its ambitious scheme 'Housing for All'. The central government has identified 305 cities and towns across nine states for implementation of the scheme. As many as 305 cities and towns have been identified in nine states for beginning of construction of houses for the urban poor under the scheme, said a senior housing and urban poverty alleviation (HUPA) ministry official. The HUPA ministry will provide assistance of over Rs 2 lakh crore over the next six years for enabling two crore urban poor own their own houses.

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Apart from Gujarat, the selected cities and towns are in Chhattisgarh (36 cities/towns), Jammu and Kashmir (19), Jharkhand (15), Kerala (15), Madhya Pradesh (74), Odisha (42), Rajasthan (40) and Telangana (34). Under the 'Housing for All' initiative of the central government, named as Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 25 June this year, two crore houses are targeted to be built for the poor in urban areas by year 2022, coinciding with 75 years of Independence.

Besides these nines states, the official said, six more states have signed memorandum of agreements (MoA) with the ministry committing themselves to implement six mandatory reforms essential for making the housing mission in urban areas a success. The states that have so far agreed to implement the mandatory reform measures are Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Telangana and Uttarakhand.

By signing the MoA, the states agreed to make necessary changes including doing away with the requirement of separate non-agricultural permission in case land falls in residential zone earmarked in master plan of city or town and preparing or amending master plans earmarking land for affordable housing, among others.

Source - The Times of India, Ahmedabad

Rupee down 16 paise against dollar in early trade

MUMBAI: Extending weakness for the second straight day, therupee declined by 16 paise to 66.30 against the US dollar in early trade on sustained month-end demand for the American currency overseas. 

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Besides, a lower opening of the domestic equity market weighed on the domestic currency but dollar's weakness against other currencies capped the losses, forex dealers said. 

The rupee had shed 10 paise to close at 66.14 against the US currency in the previous session on Friday. 
Meanwhile, the benchmark BSE Sensex was trading lower by 147.29 points or 0.55 per cent at 26,245.09 in early deals. 

Source - TOI 

Sensex trips 147 pts on profit-booking, weak Asian cues

MUMBAI: The benchmark BSE Sensex was trading lower by 147 points in early deals today on profit-booking after recent gains, while weak Asian cues also weighed. 

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Moreover, caution ahead of GDP data for the June quarter to be released in the day, too influenced trading sentiments. 

The 30-share index fell 147.29 points or 0.55 per cent to 26,245.09 as metal, power, realty, PSU, bank, capital goods and auto sector stocks succumbed to profit-booking. 
The gauge had risen by 677.72 points in the previous two sessions. 

The NSE Nifty dropped 40.90 points or 0.51 per cent to 7,961.05 in early trade. 

Brokers said besides profit-booking by participants, a weak trend at other Asian markets after the US Federal Reserve indicated it may go ahead with an interest rate hike in September, dampened trading sentiments. 

Among other Asian markets, China's Shanghai Composite tumbled 2.60 per cent, Japan's Nikkei fell 1.05 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index shed 0.47 per cent in early trade today. 

The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.07 per cent lower in Friday's trade. 

Source - TOI 

Govt announces 98 Smart Cities,Venkaiah Naidu terms them ‘safe investments for pvt firms’

The union government on Thursday released the list of 98 cities that will be developed under the Smart Cities mission. These cities together have a population of 13 crore, accounting for 35 per cent of India’s urban population.

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Names of two cities one from Jammu and Kasmir  and Uttar Pradesh each are yet to be revealed.

The metros with a population of over 50 lakh each on Smart Cities list include Chennai, Greater Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Greater Mumbai. Some of the other important urban local bodies that have been included in the list are the New Delhi Municipal Council, Vishakhapatnam, Chandigarh, Surat, Kochi, Bhopal, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Bhubaneswar, Amritsar, Jaipur, Allahabad and Lucknow.

The Smart Cities mission, launched by PM Narendra Modi in June this year, will provide central funding of Rs 48,000 crore to the selected cities for improving their infrastructure and service delivery through application of better technology and e-governance.

Explaining the meaning of Smart Cities in an Indian context, Venkaiah Naidu, Minister for Urban Development, said that it would ensure robust IT connectivity and digitization as also core infrastructure such as water supply, electricity supply, sanitation, public transport, solid waste management and affordable housing. “We are not just aiming at making our urban landscape fanciful and flashy but the prime objective is to enhance quality of urban life,” he said.

Source - The Indian Express 

Kolkata based BGA Realtors plans cheap housing in 6 states

KOLKATA: Kolkata based BGA Realtors is looking to build 1.5 million sq ft of affordable housing space across Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Assam Jharkhand, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh said a top company of ficial. 

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The developer has built 2.5 million sq ft of which 2.2 million sq has been sold. The additional projects spread over 1.5 million sq ft will be launched by 2017 and delivered by 2019. "In 2010 we had launched and sold houses at Rs 2 lakh and delivered them by 2013 without any escalation in price. The buyers, however, enjoyed a 100% return on in vestment and at present the government is valuing the same unit at Rs 6 lakh when one goes for registration of the same," said Shampa Ghose, Managing Partner, BGA Realtors. 

The apartments sized between 200 sq ft and 1,200 sq ft would mostly be studio apartments for the low income group and three bedroom units in the middle income group category, priced between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 22 lakh. 

Source - ET

Pune's topography is conducive to realty growth

Pune - Pune's topography and scope for expansion are proving conducive to the growth of realty market. Pune's evolving peripheral locations provide a great opportunity for the realty buyers to explore properties with attractive price and excellent supporting infrastructure.

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“Pune's overall topography and scope for expansion in the peripheral areas are conducive to the growth of realty market. Consequently, city's skyline has changed for better. Since there are no longer open spaces available in the city areas, peripheral locations are the only ones available for development. The vast vacant spaces available are conducive to the growth of town ships and for creating infrastructure“, says Amol Tavildar, CEO of Dajikaka Gadgil Developers Pvt Ltd.

According to experts, with global majors having set up base here, Pune is home to several major IT parks.

This demand has seen the city's off CBD locations of Magarpatta, Viman Nagar, Nagar Road, SB Road, Aundh, Baner, Shankar Seth Road, as well as the peripheral business districts of several business districts of Kharadi, Hadapsar, Hinjewadi, and Talawade be coming established as the hotspots for commercial offices. With skyrocketing property values in the main city, the development is seen to be moving towards peripheries. According to industry statistics, the maximum absorption of units launched in 2014 was seen towards the peripheral areas as against those within city limits.

Attractive peripheral locations: According to the company spokesperson of Kalpataru Ltd, most attractive evolving peripheral locations for buying homes in Pune are as follows.

Wakad: Located on the fringes of east Pune, Wakad has grown considerably in the last half-a-decade. Housing demand here has essentially been triggered due to its proximity to Hinjewadi, InfoTech and BioTech Parks. Young professionals largely prefer this location in a developed Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) and its comparative affordability to neighbouring areas.

Baner: Baner is known for its impeccable infrastructural development and excellent connectivity to Mumbai and other cities. The area offers good connectivity to arterial roads such as the Pune-Mumbai expressway and Mumbai-Bengaluru highway.

Manjri: It is located near premium areas, such as Viman Nagar, Magarpatta, Hadapsar and Kharadi, which are all within eight kms, making it popular among ITITeS employees. Bachelors or small families prefer the area with small units as they are easy to maintain.

Things to keep in mind: Expert suggests that the most important factor that needs to be considered before buying a property in Pune's evolving peripheries is its location. The area must be accessible from city's major employment centres. It must essentially be an area which is likely to see growth, and not a place that has already peaked, in terms of appreciation potential. The locations, which are close to the city's IT, manufacturing and retail hubs, have the highest rental income generation and capital appreciation power. The best areas for investment, should be those in line for significant connectivity upgrades via enhanced road networks, and should have the benefit of being within the corporation limits.

While judging the locality of a residential investment property, the existence of proper community infrastructure should be ascertained “With a good amount of quality supply, property buyers in Pune have a good spread of options from reputed developers, who adhere to standardised construction parameters and offer superior amenities and locations. Buyers should beware of the opportunistic supply of housing that is hitting the market on some of the city's peripheral areas. In these locations, many fly-by-night developers have been actively churning out sub-standard projects which do not comply with standard construction norms and often lack all the required legal approvals. Buyers should check the track record of the developer with regards to the legal compliance of his projects, timely completion and quality of construction,“ says Kishor Pate, CMD Amit Enterprises Housing Ltd.

Source - TOI 

4 key points to know about Chennai real estate

Real estate is undergoing a sluggish phase but developers announcing their luxury launches, buyers constantly searching for properties online and an increasing momentum visible within the local market may mean that you can hold on to the Chennai market.

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Expect affordable

If you were looking out for an affordable property in Chennai, perhaps now is the time to get active with your search.

In areas, such as East Coast Road, developers are also trying to come up with affordably priced villas, flats and row houses. “This is to boost sales in the sluggish market. Buyers expectations such as price correction may not be a practical route but if physical infrastructure and road repair (road widening) progresses well, a lot of land that is otherwise considered remote would open up to development thus opening up a chance for real estate sales and at affordable prices,” says SB Gururaj, Trend Homes.

Will ECR replicate Old Mahabalipuram Road’s success story? We will need to wait and watch.

The following figure gives you an overview of what is available within your budget range in the Chennai market.

Chennai Metro – will prices go up?

The happy commuters in the blue and green coaches of the Chennai Metro are not the only happy people around. With the metro rail being flung open for public use, real estate enthusiasts have been trying to analyse the market- will it or won’t it lead to capital appreciation? Take for example, real estate prices in Ashok Nagar. What stood at roughly Rs 7,500-8,000 per sq ft in 2011 now stands at an average of Rs 10,000 per sq ft.

“There has been a sizeable rise in prices if you look at prices when the Metro was announced, that is in 2009 and now. However, these areas were established even back then and the impact of the metro cannot be taken in farfetched terms. There has been a good 15-20 per cent rise in property values despite the sluggish phase over the last two years,” says P Sampath of Cityproper Homes.

“As of today, rental values are going up more visibly,” adds Sampath.

If you take the example of Alandur and its immediate premises, real estate values can go up to Rs 6,500 per sq ft compared to an average of Rs 4,500-5,200 per sq ft for homes at a distance. Prices are still going up and can go up in the nine stations on the green line which is yet to be operational,” says Krishna Murugan of MK Homes.

In other areas such as Guindy and Anna Nagar, reputed developers are coming up with their projects along the metro corridor. Trend watchers feel that although residential real estate prices may not drastically go upside, commerce might be favourably impacted in areas close to the metro corridor and this in turn will impact residential real estate prices. Meanwhile developers have also been lobbying for a higher FSI. Time will tell whether the state government obliges.

Redevelopment, anytime soon?

Mount Road or Anna Salai has been in news for not only the metro. There is a long overdue redevelopment plan along this 12 km stretch which is an important transit corridor with many commercial buildings and offices in its fold. Aging infrastructure which hasn’t kept pace with urbanization herein has raised hopes for a redevelopment plan. A higher FSI and a detailed land pooling plan is the need of the hour.

Luxury grabs attention

While real estate would have taken a back seat when it comes to the number of transactions in the last two years, there is an interesting trend we notice. Part of redevelopment makes sure that new parcels of land – formerly used for industrial and other uses have been taken up for residential use. On large land parcels, you could now expect luxury townships making a big impact.

Bill exempting property tax passed in Mumbai

The Maharashtra Legislative Assembly today passed a bill which waives off property tax for five years for the houses in Mumbai with an area upto 500 sq ft.

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During the discussion in the house, Mohammed Arif Naseem Khan of Congress demanded that the exemption should be given for 15 years.

Khan also said that the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai levies tax on built-up area of house, whereas the stamp duty is determined as per the carpet area. The civic body should also levy tax on carpet area (which is lesser of the two), to reduce the tax burden by 15 to 20 percent, he said.

Khan also demanded that MCGM be divided into three civic bodies, for the main city and the eastern and western suburbs, for better management of the country's financial capital.

Parag Alavani (BJP) said the capital value-based property tax system was aimed at having simple, transparent and non- discretionary tax structure, and not to generate more revenue.

Due to the capital value-based tax, MCGM gets additional revenue of Rs 246.41 crore, he said, adding that the civic body fails to utilise the entire budget amount and has over Rs 30,000 crore in fixed deposits in banks.

Source - TOI 

30,000 sq ft Jatia House in Mumbai is up for grabs

Spread over 3,000 square metres, with a carpet size of 30,000 square feet, Jatia House is twice the size of its famous neighbour, Mehrangir, more popularly known as Bhabha House. Last year, Bhabha House was sold for Rs 372 crore. At twice the size, Jatia House may well be sold for twice that price.

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Real estate agents JLL are handling the sale mandate exclusively. Bids will be accepted till August 31 and the auction will take place on September 7.

The decision to sell has been taken with an eye on the future. The current occupants of the house are brothers, Arun and Shyam Jatia, sons of the Pudumjee patriarch M P Jatia, and their respective families. Shyam's three daughters are married and have moved out to their respective homes. Arun has two daughters and a son. Once the daughters are married and move out, it will be a small household.

"I was around eight or nine years-old when I first moved into this house. Back then, it was my parents, my five siblings and me. But in time, my sisters got married. One of my brothers moved out and the number of family members in the house kept reducing," says Jatia.

"Eventually it will be just my son and me. We don't need such a huge space. I'll feel more comfortable in an apartment, rather than a landed property," he adds. Also, a staff of 35 to run a household for two may be quite impractical in time.

Looking back Jatia house has been home to the family for over 40 years. Since 1980, Jatia moved around a fair bit, first to the US for studies and then to Singapore for business. But Jatia House was always home. "I've learnt to stay away from the family house. But when you are moving out of the nest, there are bound to be emotional implications," says Jatia, "One must always accept change."

See other luxury houses on sale in Mumbai

He looks back on his time at Jatia House and its memories fondly. Moving into the bungalow was a dream come true for Jatia's father. The family moved to India from Myanmar in 1964, after the political coup in the country and bought Jatia House in 1971.

"My father used to always live in a bungalow (in Myanmar). So he was yearning to move into a bungalow, even when he came to India," he reminisces. The house also proved lucky for the family, he believes. They started Pudumjee Paper Mills almost immediately after moving in.

For Jatia, the house was filled with celebration and parties that his father loved throwing. Like the time Jatia senior and a friend of his realised they'd been friends for 50 years and decided to throw a party to toast the friendship. The house has even hosted weddings — first for two of his sisters and then a niece — accommodating over 600-800 guests.

The little things to miss Jatia accepts that a house such as this will be difficult to find today. Moving into an apartment, after being a lifelong bungalow resident, he will miss the serenity, the quiet, the greens and the morning sea views he enjoys from his bedroom. Or that occasional glass of wine or a puff of the cigar in one of his favourite spots in the house, the library.

"When you have a bungalow, you don't lock your cars. You just open the main gate, open your car and drive off. With an apartment, you must put your car in the parking lot," Jatia says. He hopes that the bungalow's new buyers will enjoy it as much as his family and he have. "We hope that whoever buys this house, uses it as one, rather than redevelop it. The kind of architecture of the house, with its Burma teak wood paneling, is very difficult to create today. Built in 1928, the house has a long history," he says.

The family will move out by next week and is in the process of shipping out its furniture. But it has made time between all the shifting to celebrate the house. The house was entrusted to the sons and daughters, nieces and nephews for a weekend of fun. There was also a photo shoot of the family and the house to frame the memories. As for the proceeds of the sale, they'll be divided between the family. For his share, Jatia says, "I'll buy another house for starters and then save some." Plenty saving.

Source - ET

Government releases list of 98 smart cities

The government on Thursday released a list of 98 cities, including 24 state capitals, which are to be developed as smart cities. Maximum number of to-be-developed smart cities are in UP, followed by Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.

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13 cities from UP, 12 from Tamil Nadu, 10 from Maharashtra, 7 from MP, 3 each from Bihar and Andhra Pradesh included in smart cities list.

In the first year, the government would select 24 cities that would be developed into smart cities. The list of smart cities was unveiled by Union minister Venkaiah Naidu.

Speaking on the occasion, Naidu said, "prime motive behind the smart city project is to enhance urban life."

"The smart city mission is very practical and realistic. We need public's participation. Smart cities need smart people, we need people's co-operation to move forward in our mission," Naidu said.

The released a list containing features of a smart city.

Source - Magicbricks News

Rupee marginally up at 66.02 against dollar in early trade

MUMBAI: The rupee recovered marginally by two paise to 66.02 against the US dollar in early trade on Friday amid gains in stock markets. 

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Dealers said a higher opening in the domestic equity market and dollar's weakness against other currencies overseas supported the rupee. 

The rupee had recovered 10 paise to close at 66.04 against the US dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange on Thursday. Meanwhile, the benchmark Sensex surged 350.94 points, or 1.33 per cent, to 26,582.13 in early trade. 

Source - TOI 

Sensex climbs 350 points; Nifty regains 8,000-mark

MUMBAI: The benchmark BSE Sensex rallied over 350 points to 26,582.13 in early trade on Friday on continued buying by investors as the September series in the derivatives segment began on a strong note. 

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The Nifty of National of Stock Exchange regained the 8,000-mark by rising 113 points. 

The 30-share Sensex, which had gained 516.53 points in Thursday's session, rose further by 350.94 points or 1.33 per cent to 26,582.13 points. Led by realty, metal, IT and oil & gas, all the sectoral indices of BSE were in the positive zone. 

The NSE Nifty reclaimed 8,000-mark by climbing 113.00 points, or 1.42 per cent at 8,061.95. 

Brokers said widening of positions by participants, following beginning of the September month F&O series and a firming trend at other Asian markets following overnight gains on the US markets after strong economic data, buoyed trading sentiments. 

Besides, sustained buying by domestic financial institutions also supported the rally, they said. 

Among other Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei gained 2.77 per cent,Shanghai Composite index rose 2.17 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 1.66 per cent in early trade. 

The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 2.27 per cent higher in Thursday's trade.

Source - TOI 

Bandaru miffed with 'illegal' building

HYDERABAD: Until now it was only the common man who was irked by the illegal construction of buildings. The issue has now starting to give sleepless nights to even the Union ministers.

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Only to exemplify the situation, the minister of state for labour and employment (independent charge) Bandaru Dattatraya shot off a strong letter to the commissioner of police, asking officials to curb illegal construction in front of his residence at Ramnagar.

The letter which is in possession with TOI says that the building in question has permission for two floors only, but the owner has constructed three additional floors.

According to the letter, the owner has illegally constructed the building by influencing the concerned GHMC officials. "The municipal authorities have also promised him that they will clear the property by way of BRS (building regularisation scheme), which is said to be launched next year," Dattatraya said.

The minister has further questioned how the building never came under the scrutiny of the GHMC. "If the police cannot provide security for the only Union minister from the state, then how can it promise security for the common citizens," he stated.

Taking cognisance of the rampant irregularities in the construction of buildings in the city, the chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, also convened a high-level meeting with officials from the GHMC, HMDA and other line departments to chalk out an action plan to curb the menace.

"When we acquired the separate state of Telangana, we acquired all the misdeeds of the previous government's as well. One of them, being illegal constructions in the capital city. The situation has only worsened, it is time for all the departments to initiate action against such constructions," said the CM. He also opined that the GHMC and HMDA must take assistance from legal advisors.

"It would serve the city better if the departments have a flying squad to inspect all constructions," he said.

He further specified that there must be a proper system in place to curb such instances, while adding that plans of regularising illegal construction and land, would be taken up after due talks with the concerted civic departments.

According to the GHMC officials there are as many as 67,000 illegal domestic constructions within its limits. If the government plans to initiate the regularisation of these buildings, it would stand to earn as much as Rs 1,000 crore as penalties. But there might be legal tangles in the matter since in 2008, the former Congress chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy had told the Hyderabad High Court that there would be no more BRS provisions in the city.

If the police cannot provide security for the only Union minister from the state, then how can it promise security for the common citizens

Bandaru Dattatraya, Minister of state for labour and employment

Source - TOI 

Construction slowdown hits PM Modi's jobs promise

NOIDA: After a decade labouring on building sites around New Delhi Akhilesh Kumar lost his scaffolding job last month when his employer halted work on an array of 30 residential towers.

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He joins more than half a million workers let go from sites around India's capital in the last 18 months, in a stark sign that the ground reality in Asia's third-largest economy is far from as rosy as official data suggests.

"If I don't get another job, I have no other choice but to go back to my village and work as a farm labourer," said Kumar, who is in his twenties.

The lack of jobs is already being felt in the poor northern state of Bihar, source of many of the labourers toiling near Delhi.

In Patna, the state capital, eight out of 20 labourers contacted by Reuters had this year made the 1,000 kilometre (600 mile) trip back from Delhi because they could not find work - pressuring salaries in a region where wages are already low.

According to brokerage Ambit Capital, rural wages may now be falling after growing 4 percent in the year to March - a far cry from the double-digit annual rises between 2010 and 2014.

"Labourers are starving and are ready to work even at lower wages as there are fewer or just no jobs in the construction markets," said Navendu Kumar Thakur, Patna chairman of the Builders Association of India.

The squeeze comes at a bad time for Modi.

Bihar heads to the polls this year, in an election his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) must win to gain seats in the upper house of parliament where he lacks a majority to pass economic reforms.

Economists say that lower interest rates and a government splurge on infrastructure should eventually help revive construction, which contributes a tenth of Indian GDP.

Modi's party also wants to regulate property markets and tie investor money to specific projects to stop developers diverting cash elsewhere.

The slowdown around Delhi, where unsold inventory is highest, shows no sign of abating, however.

Noida, a city of 640,000, has grown rapidly in the last decade, expanding to a point where its middle-class housing complexes now meld into Delhi's urban sprawl on one side and rustic villages on the other.

Around the site where Kumar worked, half-built high-rises now dot the skyline. Cranes and diggers stand idle. His former employer, The 3C Company, has cut staff on the 3,000-unit "Lotus Boulevard" by more than half, employing some elsewhere.

Sales staff at two nearby sites reported a 30 to 50 percent decline in bookings in the last year.

Real estate association CREDAI's Rohit Raj Modi estimates construction in Noida employed more than a million labourers at its peak in 2013, at least double today's number.

Even when the market recovers, a shift to mechanisation on larger sites would limit demand for new workers.

"From a labour point of view, the peak is over," he said.

Source - TOI 

Mumbai set to have India's tallest commercial building

NEW DELHI: India's tallest commercial building is set to come up in Mumbai, with the Nitin Gadkari-led Ministry of Shipping proposing to construct a towering 'business district' on Mumbai Port Trust land to monetise the asset and ease the space crunch in the country's financial capital.

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 "It will be a 130-storey building and will house mostly offices along with other amenities. We are working on the plan and it's still in initial stages," Gadkari told ET.

The project, which may cost more than .`10,000 crore, is likely to be developed without costing the government asingle penny, financed with funds raised from pre-booking of space from public sector units and private companies. The proposed building would be in the vicinity of Nariman Point, once considered Mumbai's leading business district, and the Fort area in south Mumbai.

Other business districts in the city include the Bandra Kurla Complex, which was set up in the suburbs to decongest the commercial areas of south Mumbai. Apart from the number of floors, little else is known about the building. The contours of the project, including the location of the building in the port trust premises, are yet to be finalised. The ministry is engaging an international consultant to prepare the blueprint for the project. "A separate master plan for the port land would be prepared and this building would be a part of it. We are yet to finalise the land parcel and the area for this building," a senior government official said.

The government is likely to undertake the project on its own — land won't be given to private builders for redevelopment. "If the logistics issues of evacuation of people without stressing the cargo-laden port roads are addressed, the proposed 130-storey building will have a demonstrative effect on a mechanism for monetising land assets owned by ports," said Jaijit Bhattacharya, Partner-Infrastructure at KPMG 

Source - ET

ICICI offers home loans with guarantee

MUMBAI: Those who have not managed to buy a house until middle age can now get a long-term loan with ICICI Bankintroducing a product for this segment. The home loan has been made possible with the help of a guarantee from a company promoted by National Housing Bank and US insurer Genworth Financial.

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Unlike standard loans which are not available beyond the retirement age of a borrower, ICICI Bank's 'Extraa Home Loan' allows loans that are repayable up to 67 years of age. In a first such deal, ICICI Bank has tied up with the newly promotedIndia Mortgage Guarantee Corporation (IMGC), which will guarantee the repayment of the loan. The fee for the guarantee, which will be around 1 per cent of the loan amount, will have to be paid by the borrower and will be built into the equated monthly instalments.

Borrowers up to 37 years of age can avail of a 30-year loan. The longer tenure of the loan would shrink the EMIs and increase the borrower's loan eligibility. According to ICICI Bank officials, loan eligibility will increase by up to 20 per cent depending on the age of the borrower.Speaking at the launch of the scheme, ICICI Bank MD & CEO Chanda Kochhar said the home loan industry has been growing at 15 per cent for over 10 years and the government's focus on housing for all will push up demand for home loans and the new products will increase accessibility of mortgages. "The housing sector is of strategic importance to any economy. It is the key driver of growth with linkages to a number of sectors," she said.

To begin with, the loans will be available at the bank's branches in Greater Mumbai, NCR, Bengaluru and Surat. Subsequently, it will be rolled out across the other cities in the country. The salaried as well as self-employed individuals seeking home loans of a maximum amount of Rs 75 lakh are eligible for this loan and the maximum age at entry is 48 years.

Mortgage guarantees with the intention to mitigate risk taken by lenders, banks and housing finance companies, over time make it easier for people to get access to home loans with lower down payment amounts (as prescribed by regulations) earlier in life than would have been possible without IMGC's involvement.

Source - TOI 

Sensex climbs 455 pts on F&O expiry, positive global cues

MUMBAI: The benchmark BSE Sensex recovered over 455 points to cross 26,000 level in early trade while NSE Nifty crossed the 7,900 mark on short covering by participants on expiry of derivatives contracts and strong global cues. 


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The 30-share barometer spurted by 455.73 points, or 1.77 per cent, to 26,170.39. Yesterday, it had lost 317.72 points. 

Besides, value-buying in realty, healthcare,, auto, metal, banking, PSUs capital goods and oil and gas stocks positively impacted trading sentiment. The NSE Nifty regained the 7,900-mark by surging 138.95 points, or 1.78 per cent, to 7,930.80 in early trade. 

Brokers said short covering by participants as today being the last trading session of August contracts in the derivatives space supported the market. 

A firming trend at other Asian bourses following overnight gains in the US market after hints the US Federal Reserve will not raise interest rates next month sparked a rally on domestic bourses, they said. 

At 0945 hrs, the BSE Sensex was trading at 25,964.12 points, up by 249.46 points or 0.97 per cent over the previous close. 

The 50-share Nifty was up by 74.65 piints, or 0.96 per cent, at 7,866.50 with Vedanta Ltd and HDFC leading the rally. 

Among other Asian markets, Shanghai composite Index up 1.12 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng firmed up 2.45 per cent while Japan's Nikkei higher by 1.89 per cent in early trade today. 

The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 3.95 per cent higher in Wednesday's trade.

Source - TOI 

Rupee higher 26 paise against dollar in early trade

MUMBAI: The rupee recovered by 26 paise to 65.88 against the US dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market in early trade on Thursday on selling of the American currency. 

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Forex dealers said besides selling of the American currency by exporters and banks, weakness in the dollar against other currencies supported the rupee. 

Further, domestic equity markets opening on strong note also influenced the rupee uptrend, they added. The rupee had lost 4 paise versus the dollar to end at 66.14 in the previous session on renewed dollar demand from importers amid global volatility. 

The benchmark BSE Sensex rose 455.73 points, or 1.77 per cent, to 26,170.39 in early trade today.

Source - TOI