This 126 km long Virar – Alibaug Multi Modal Corridor will connect NH-8, Bhiwandi bypass, NH-3, NH-4 and NH-4B, Mumbai-Pune Expressway, NH-17, etc. Out of this 126 km corridor, 79 km long Virar (Navghar) to Chirner (JNPT) corridor has been declared financially feasible and has been approved by the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA) in March, 2012.
A closer look at some of the leading property markets of the country, like Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore, clearly suggest that the market is poised for an upswing in the next few years. More importantly, it is not just the analysts but also the home-buyers who are today; ready to bet high on the long term growth story of the property market in these leading cities.
Be it Mumbai or Pune in the Western part of India or Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai in the South, the homebuyers seem to be convinced with the reality of GST and its implications with various stages of construction. It is hence not surprising that most of the homebuyers across the cities today wish to invest in ready to move apartments to save from the hassles of paying the GST.
There are very few case studies where the developers have flocked out to cities on sheer promise without registering their presence in the four metro cities. However, such migration to magnet territory is today quite visible in Gujarat where the developers from other states are increasingly flocking, most notably in the city of Ahmedabad.
The question is in the absence of high paying economic activity like IT/ITeS will the city keep the desired pace to sustain the projected growth and the life style. Critics often point out that in the absence of steadfast pace of economic activity the market may end up being another investors’ haven. However, developers active in this market maintain that more employment opportunities have seen people preferring to stay in Bhiwadi than commute to work. Also, a large number of floating population from nearby cities and across the country is still high, which needs to be catered to in terms of their aspiration and lifestyle choices. The rise of nuclear families have further seen emergence of more demand for dwelling units in the region.
When one develops a slum, for instance, and even if 20 per cent of land is given for commercial use as incentive in the bargain, it is a deal for the developer. After all, in the space starved city like Mumbai even a small chunk of land in any of the prime location is a rare commodity. The question is if such a business dynamics is a feasible model, why did the developers shied away from making the best of it so far.
Despite delayed implication of demonetisation and recent layoffs by technology companies, due to automation and changing technology, commercial market continued to remain resilient, backed by sustained expansion plans of the major occupiers. The Gross office take-up in India amounted to 9.6 mn sq ft (882,800 sq m) in Q2 2017 representing a nominal 2% increase Q-o-Q from 9.3 mn sq ft (Total office absorption in H1 2017 stands at ~18.9 mn sq ft, as per Colliers Research marginally down by 2% from, H1 2016)
Mostly as of now only the developers of integrated townships have got into the healthcare investment. The dilemma of whether or not to have healthcare facility in the project also comes with whether the developer should himself get into the operational side of running it or it should be outsourced post the investment.
Are the CBDs really losing out as the benchmark of economic activity in the major cities of India? Well, if only Gurgaon business destinations as against Connaught Place or Nehru Place in Delhi-NCR are any indication, or if only BKC and Navi Mumbai as against Nariman Point in Mumbai is any indication, then the CBDs have lost a significant ground by all means of reputation and economic scale.
It is the roll out of the policies by the respective urban bodies that have been behind the BKC emerging as a case study of urbanisation with booming economy while Noida ending up as a ghost city sitting over piles of unsold housing stock. Both the markets nevertheless had the tremendous potential in its early stage of inception.