Track2Realty Exclusive: Cities come into existence either by design or by default and the first movers (either the local urban bodies or the private developers) give it a definite outlook & shape in terms of urban planning and overall outlook of the given city. This has been the pattern of urbanisation and rise and growth of the cities across the world with Indian being no exception.
But wait! Before one would think that development of the city is an organic process everywhere, there comes Noida into reckoning which has defied the conventional growth pattern of cities. As a matter of fact, the emergence of Noida, though an organic process by the local body, gradually shaped up in a way that can neither be described as organic nor inorganic.
Noida, as a matter of fact, has been witness to a holistic growth led by the market forces and hence this has also shaped up as one of those rare markets where the demand supply gap is much lesser than many other markets across the country. The genesis of Noida’s emergence goes back to the first master plan of Delhi, prepared in 1962, that suggested a planned decentralisation of large scale economic activities from Delhi and development of towns around it. It finally came into existence during emergency in 1976 with an objective to cater to Delhi’s commercial needs and to address the Capital’s concern of polluting industries.
On April 17, 1976 the Uttar Pradesh Government had notified 36 villages of the Yamuna-Hindon-Delhi Border Regulated Area as New Okhla Industrial Development Area, better known as Noida. The State Government also constituted a new statutory body, the New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (NOIDA) to ensure planned development of the area for industrial and allied uses.
What actually was conceptualised as an industrial zone soon transformed into an affordable residential zone with land prices being as cheap as Rs. 120 per sq feet. People from South Delhi and West Delhi started moving to Noida, added to the fact that the ex army men also found it an ideal location to settle in post retirement. In the initial stages it was mainly the plotted developments in the city. However, the apartment culture soon started changing the outlook of Noida and it started turning into a most favoured destination for the upwardly-mobile middle class as well as global companies. The influx of IT/ITeS further goaded the property market of Noida to northwards and today Noida is no longer seen as the poor cousin of Gurgaon or any other part of Delhi NCR.
Analysts believe the seeds of modern city have been sown by the policy makers with the creation of better infrastructure and connectivity and the location close to Delhi proved to be the icing on the cake. Gaurav Gupta, Director, SG Estates maintains that Noida Property market is relatively more matured market and has been successful in establishing itself as the preferred place for people looking to buy house in Delhi NCR. According to him, due to its close proximity with South Delhi, multiple connecting points and metro connectivity Noida is shaping up as the real growth driver today. Infrastructure growth in Noida has kept pace with the growing population. Buyers here have multiple options to choose from both in affordable and luxury segments.
“Noida real estate has changed over the years from industrial belt to affordable and now high end. In this shift from Industrial belt to residential place the government has played a major role by releasing land for development of housing. Earlier it was only affordable options but recently various luxurious projects have come up. The major reason for luxury projects to come is the well developed infrastructure and availability of quality land parcels,” says Gupta.
Nikhil Hawelia, Managing Director of Hawelia Group agrees that great connectivity, infrastructure, abundance of facilities and the entry of large number of corporates have made Noida a leading real estate market today. He believes any city, in order to grow as a residential or commercial hub and to lure its potential customers, need to set in place its basic infrastructure and facilities as these factors are pivotal in decision making. Noida has done all the things right and hence it has become one of the fastest developing sub-cities in the NCR, creating a buzz around the region. Appreciation in property prices over the year has also made it a sought after destination.
“With acute shortage of land parcels in and around Delhi and a surge of demand for property in surrounding regions, Noida will continue to entice potential customers and investors as a preferred destination. With massive infrastructure work in the pipeline, Noida has been in the limelight for progressive growth of residential and commercial hubs. There has really been a lot of development across various sectors which are witnessing healthy absorption trends, thanks to projects that promise world-class architecture and amenities. Great infrastructure, good road network and metro connectivity to all key destinations are the prime reasons that have enticed the buyers and investors to this area,” says Hawelia.
Everyone within the built environment agrees that in the initial stages of its inception, the emphasis was on meeting the basic needs and all construction and development works were majorly concentrated in fulfilling the required demand. Initially emergence of Noida was to be an industrial town but after the settlement of big scale industries the authority also realised the need of residential as well as commercial establishments. Over the years the market forces assumed the command and are now taking this market to a new high where the developers are only catering to the emerging demand of the region. Noida is thus transforming into a global city today.
This may give an impression that the emergence of Noida as a city with global standards has been a natural progression. But the fact of the matter is that Noida’s growth story has actually been a case of being delayed but not denied. Noida for quite some time had been witness to the fact that global corporate and other high net worth individuals were looking towards Gurgaon market despite the fact that physical infrastructure in this zone has been much better.
The authorities were also conscious of the fact that the absence of an international airport has been an investment deterrent and hence concerted efforts were made to create the best social infrastructure in the entire Delhi-NCR. This led to change of perception and Noida soon got into an image makeover.
There is no doubt that the upcoming Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) and a proposed airport around would redefine Noida in terms of its future roadmap. Those who have been witness to Noida’s emergence in the last 38 years call it awesome and those who have not come to this part during all these years will find it hard to believe. Noida nevertheless continues to grow on the fast forward lane of prosperity.
