Posts Tagged ‘Kerala Infrastructure’

Scepticism persists in the area of affordable housing

November 21st, 2009

If the global recession forced IT firms to cut down on their expenditure, renegotiate or cancel their deals, reduce employees’ intake and office space as well, it made real estate developers to come out with affordable housing for those in the bottom end of pyramid.

Soon affordable housing became the industry’s buzzword and houses in the price range of over Rs.40 lakh were described as affordable.

But investors started to quiz about those in the Rs.25-40 lakh brackets.

At a recent meeting on “South India real estate – the way ahead” organised by Confederation of Indian Industry, the end-users said that there was hardly any drop in the housing prices and sought the reason from the developers for selling land at abnormally high costs, even though it was procured at cheaper prices.

To this, the developers said that the land resources was limited and the prices were fixed based on the demand-supply factor.

Since there has been a mismatch, the prices were on the rise. But, the end-users were not convinced. As a next step, the developers urged the State government to allocate lands to them at low cost for development.

Vikram Kapur, Member Secretary, Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA), said that Government lands were not available for housing in Tamil Nadu, particularly in Chennai.

On the flip side, the CMDA planned to develop large parcels of land by partnering with farmers to avoid legal tussles.

The developed land would be given to public sector for development of housing on a large scale.

Kumar Gera, Chairman, Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Association of India (CREDAI), attributed the high land cost and taxes as key factors that impacted the development of affordable housing.

Extend boundary

R. Sellamuthu, Additional Chief Secretary and Housing Development Commissioner, Tamil Nadu, said that to avoid people migrating to city and to meet the ever-growing metropolitan needs, it was planned to extent the boundary of the Chennai Metropolitan Area to 1,500 sq.km from the present 1,182 sq.km.

After a decade or so, this boundary line would be extended to 2,000 sq.km.

The boundaries of other cities in the State will be expanded. Besides, total transport mobility will be in place in the next five to six years to offer better, cheaper, safer and quicker transportation.

Immediately, the topic changed to affordable office space. R. Siddarthan, Centre Head – Infrastructure, Tata Consultancy Services, mentioned that the company closed down their facility in Vadapalani and moved people to its premises on Rajiv Gandhi Salai.

It was unthinkable in other times as people would have simply refused to move. “It was a wrong way of long-term planning to meet the infrastructure needs. For the Q2 2010, our net addition to manpower was 1,692 or 1.21 per cent and office space was 76,140 sq.ft or 1.21 per cent. We haven’t thought about 2010 graduates,” he said.

To meet the space requirement, his suggestions were: reduce flexibility, but remain agile; change the way of long-term planning to meet infrastructure demands, look for more options; revisit or re-do the contracts; consolidate space requirements and improve efficiency.

Today building value and rentals are done based on current market conditions rather than the past transactions and there was a likelihood of being overvalued in a downturn. Developers will have to adjust to new market conditions, if they have to survive, the speakers said.

Ramesh Nair, Managing Director, Jones Lang Lasalle Meghraj, said that a study of Singapore market revealed that upward trend lasted for three-four years and downward trend for two to three years.

“Recession had impacted every single market in the world. The worst is over and recovery would start by mid-2010 and it will be stable during 2011 and 2012,” he said.

News Published Under:  The Hindu

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Public bodies coming up with housing projects

November 21st, 2009

Several government, quasi-government and cooperative agencies are coming up with new housing projects as the concept of affordable housing gains prominence in the State.

In the past one year or so, many of these agencies had shied away from construction projects, the reason being the downturn in the real estate sector. But, more that a decade ago, the Kerala State Housing Board and cooperative societies such as the Ko zhikode Bhavana Nirmana Sahakara Sanghom (house construction cooperative society) had made a mark in the real estate market. However, they seemed to have run out of steam with the coming of private builders.

The housing board has now drawn up a proposal on a build-share-transfer basis on 65 cents (0.25 hectares) of land at Chevarambalam in Kozhikode city. Tenders have already been invited from private builders for constructing either residential complexes or commercial-cum-residential complexes. The builders will be short-listed soon based on the bids, says Jacob John, Executive Engineer, who is the Regional Engineer in-charge.

Selection criteria

One of the basic requirements is that the builder should have designed and executed similar projects, at least three of them, within a three-year period.

The project cost is Rs.15 crore. Construction activities will be on the basis of the existing rules of local bodies. The selected builder should complete the project within a stipulated period, he says.

The company will be selected for the project based on the highest quantity of shares it offers to the board. The ownership of the project will be with the housing board, but the builder can do business, he says.

Mr. John says the proposals for build-share-transfer and private-public participation projects have also been envisaged on 12 acres (one acre = 0.4 hectare) of land near the medical college.

Foraying into the construction sector, the Calicut City Service Cooperative Bank has announced a Rs.12-crore construction project at Chalappuram. The proposed cooperative complex will be constructed at a cost of Rs.12 crore.

Four floors, with an area of around 12,000 sq ft, of the complex will be entirely utilised for the head office of the bank and a farmers’ centre, says P.A. Jayaprakash and T.M. Velayudhan, directors of the bank.

Fifty flats will be constructed on the remaining floors of the 14-storey complex. The total area will be more than 71,000 sq ft. Earlier, there was a proposal to construct office spaces and a head office. The bank is yet to work out the details of allotting the flats, Mr. Velayudan says.

The cost of the project will be recovered through sale of the apartment area, he says.

Earlier, the housing board has been spearheading big projects in Kozhikode city. Hundreds of dwelling units thus have come up in places such as Chevarambalam, East Hill, Chevayur, Bilathikulam, Chakkorathukulam and Malaparamba. The boom in the realty sector two years ago saw several allottees occupying the flats at reasonable rates. Some have brought them for investment purposes. By returning to the housing sector once again, the housing board is providing an opportunity to middle-class people to get reasonably priced homes.

The sanghom is searching for land in the city for new projects. It had constructed more than 550 units in various places in a span of 30 years, says K.M. Radhakrishnan, secretary.

The Gandhi Nagar and Vrindavan Colony were the first villa project constructed under the cooperative society in the city.

The society has constructed flats at Eranhipalam and Chintavalappu. The villas are at Chevayur, Hill View, Vidya Nagar and Field View. Devi Nagar at Bilathikulam; Ullas Nagar at Pottamal; Giri Nagar on Florican Hill Road; Netaji Nagar at Kottoli and Kairali Nagar on Florican Road are the other projects.

The housing societies target the middle class. The projects of cooperative societies get the benefit of stamp duty waiver. Many say these are affordable.

News Published Under:  The Hindu

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Improve infrastructure on city roads: DDC

September 28th, 2009

KOCHI: The District Development Committee (DDC) has asked the State government to resolve the traffic problems of the city by recruiting more personnel to city traffic police and constructing more overbridges and flyovers.

K. Babu, MLA, moved a resolution to this effect at a meeting of the committee held at the collectorate conference hall on Saturday. M.J. Jacob, MLA, seconded the resolution. District Collector M. Beena presided.

MLAs, M.M. Monayee, and Dinesh Mani pointed out the various difficulties in the repair works and maintenance of roads in the district.

Dr. Beena said that efforts had been intensified for the construction of the approach road to the Kumbalanghi-Ezhupunna Bridge. Executive engineer, Public Works, said that maintenance works of Brahmapuram-Karimukgal Road would be undertaken shortly.Bills on works executed using the flood relief fund till June 30 had been cleared, Assistant Development Commissioner V.S. Soman said.

K.V. Beena, programme coordinator, National Rural Health Mission, said that tender procedures had been completed for the maintenance works of the taluk hospital at Muvattupuzha. Babu Paul, MLA, asked for more facilities at the hospitals in Pandappilly and Payipra.

Dr. Beena said that Rs. 13 lakh had been allotted for the community health centre at Malippuram. M.K. Purushothaman, MLA, asked about the progress of work on the health sub centre at Nayarambalam.

MLAs, Dinesh Mani and K. Babu asked to remove the shortcomings in the functioning of government hospitals at Chellanam and Palluruthy.

Mr. Monayee and Mr. Jacob wanted the maintenance works of the Muvattupuzha and Periyar Valley irrigation canals to be completed by November. Mr. Paul said that early completion of survey works in the irrigation project areas was vital for the eligible to be granted possession rights. Dr. Beena informed the meeting that approval had been received for the construction of village offices at Kalloorkkavu and Kaipattur.

T.U. Kuruvilla, MLA, brought to notice the construction of compound wall for the forest depot at Kothamangalam and the resultant traffic problems in the area.

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Kerala set to open first phase of Rs.600-cr IT park

September 19th, 2009

The first phase of the Rs.600-crore Koratty information technology park in Kerala, being set up as part of the state government’s plan to open IT parks in all districts, will be opened Oct 10.

The project, coming up on 42 acres in Koratty in Thrissur district, is one of the fastest developed IT parks in the state, Siddhartha Bhattacharya, chief executive of Infopark Kochi, which is developing the project, told IANS.

“The 42-acre plot that was given to set up the park earlier housed the Madura Coats factory. In just seven months of taking over the land, we refurbished the 14 villas that existed over there. There is also an old club house, which has been modernised,” said Bhattacharya.

Eight villas and the club house are ready now and 10 companies which would employ 400 professionals are all set to function from here, he added.

The remaining six villas would be ready in the next few months.

“The rates here are so cheap that we offer plug and play facility at Rs.30 per square feet. Those who want semi-furnished facilities, the rate per square feet is just Rs.15,” Bhattacharya said.

The prevailing rates at the Infopark and the Thiruvananthapuram-based Technopark are around Rs.45 per square feet and upwards.

In the second phase development, the government plans to set up a 200,000-square feet IT building, incorporating the green building concept.

“This new signature IT building will be designed to provide a beautiful and inspiring atmosphere and once complete there would be more than 6,000 professionals working at the Koratty IT park,” Bhattacharya said.

In May last year, the state government announced that IT level parks would be developed under private-public partnership model in all 14 districts.

In the first phase, IT parks would come up in Kollam, Alappuzha, Thrissur, Kannur and Kasaragod districts.

Currently, IT companies operating in the state are based either at the Technopark or Infopark.

Nearly 150 companies are operating in the Technopark. They employ close to 20,000 people, while around 40 companies that employ nearly 8,000 people are in the Infopark.

News Published Under:  Manorama Online

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KSHB back with project proposals

September 19th, 2009

The government is on an offensive to end the slackness in the housing and real estate sectors by launching projects at a time when private builders seem to think twice before doing so.

Taking a cue from what the housing boards in West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and a number of other States have done, the Kerala State Housing Board has planned to take the private-public partnership route to wipe away its liability.

In fact, one of the prime projects at Marine Drive will help the board come out of the red, believes Noel Thomas, Housing Commissioner and Secretary of the board. In a month, consultants will be selected for giving a detailed project report on the Marine Drive plan. The board, which has about 18 acres of land at the Marine Drive, plans to have a tourism, commercial and housing project.

Hotels, office space, convention centre and multiplexes are some of the ideas that have come up. A preliminary study by the board has pointed out that 17 lakh sq.ft of built-up space can be made available.

Since there are environmental concerns, the government held several rounds of discussion before agreeing to the project, Mr. Thomas said.

With an eye on the upcoming LNG terminal at Vallarpadam, the board has conceptualised the space here with a futuristic design, Mr. Thomas said. The prime project will be launched early next year and the full project is likely to be completed by three years, he said.

The housing projects of the board in at least four other places in Ernakulam district are expected to add to the signs of revival that the sector is showing these days. “We believe a revival in the sector by the end of the current financial year,” Mr. Thomas said.

The board has planned to invite builders for the construction on a build-share-transfer basis. The bidders should have done a project of that level in the last three years. Such a criterion is to keep the less-experienced ones away.

The board has got into a financial crisis because of the large number of houses it has financed for the weaker sections who have not been able to remit their part of the payment,

Mr. Thomas said. Unlike the boards in other States, the KSHB has built 6 lakh houses. With a loan of Rs.2,000 crore from HUDCO over the past 35 years, the board has not been able to take up many projects. So far, the liability of Rs.1,500 crore is over and a new outlook with private partnership is expected to push the board on track again, Mr. Thomas said.

Since pricing of houses is most important in a downward looking market, the board intends to keep it affordable considering the market dynamics at the time. In Panampilly Nagar, there will be a 32-unit complex, while the project at Kumaran Asan Nagar will be a 36-unit one.

At Thrikkakara, where the board already has project in innovative housing for the working class, there will be yet another project for the middle and higher income groups that will have 60-65 units.

At Irimpanam, where the board has some prime roadside land on the side of the Seaport-Airport road, a multi-storey housing complex will have a basement and two floors of commercial area.

If these projects are implemented, the board is likely to give a lead to many building projects in the State that are, at present, either going slow or have come to a standstill.
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Good times ahead for realty in Kozhikode city

August 22nd, 2009

The lull in the construction sector has disappeared. After a hiatus, the sector has picked up in a moderate way in Kozhikode city. The slowdown in the real estate sector has had its drastic impact on the construction sector for some time, leaving builders to face the music.

Now, property developers are in high spirits in the wake of the revival of the industry. New projects have taken off. Ongoing projects are getting ready for occupancy. Then, there has been an encouraging response to the three-day Calicut Property Show held at the Marine Grounds last week.

“Approximately 1,500 serious customers had registered for the event. The walk-ins were over 4,000. That is a good trend compared to other cities of the country,” says M.A. Mehaboob, secretary, Confederation of the Real Estate Developers Association of India (CREDAI) Kozhikode chapter.

Wide variety

Projects of 16 Kozhikode-based builders were on display at the show. Villas, apartments, studio homes, townships and commercial space were among them. The builders had also displayed their ongoing projects in Malappuram, Thalassery, Kannur and Kochi. Customers had been provided the option of booking an apartment or villa at the venue.

Most of them were genuine buyers keenly interested in investing in a project on a long-term basis. Short-term investment had been a temporary phenomenon. In fact, property transaction has been on between real buyers and sellers. The demand for housing in the city and its suburbs has not declined in the past two years, Mr. Mehaboob says.

Builders say that several mega information technology (IT) projects are being mooted in the city in the next few years. Some of them have also launched new projects. Infrastructure development is also going on at a fast pace. The flyover at the Arayadathupalam junction will be completed this year and the Malaparamba-Vengalam stretch of the Vengalam-Ramanattukara bypass will be ready in 2010. These two projects, once completed, will spur construction activities specifically related to the real estate sector on the bypass stretch.

New projects are expected on the beach, in the medical college area and around the civil station and Thondayad.

Already, builders at the State and national levels have evinced interest in launching housing projects in Kozhikode.

After all, the realty business last fiscal was not bad in the city in spite of the downturn in the industry. Business estimated at Rs.500 crore would have taken place in the housing sector in the city in the last financial year. The average annual business will be in the range of Rs.500 crore to Rs.600 crore. The big boom was during the 2006-07 period when the business crossed Rs.1,000 crore.

The rate of an apartment or villa is in the range of Rs 2,600-3,000 a sq.ft. Units have also been sold at Rs.2,400 a sq.ft. The rationalisation of prices in Kozhikode, unlike elsewhere in the country, has caught the attention of serious buyers.

“Kozhikode has not witnessed an artificial demand for housing. Buyers also respond positively to the offers,” says K.V. Haseeb Ahamed, State treasurer of CREDAI.

This recovery is good for the industry. The housing sector is going to witness a boom in the outer fringes of the city. Small towns will see greater development activities with the growth in urban population. Remittance from non-resident Indians (NRIs) will contribute to the growing income. Over 70 per cent of the construction sector in the city directly or indirectly involves the NRI segment.

Adequate funds

Mr. Ahamed says that the banking sector has been munificently helping the real estate sector.

There is no paucity of funds for builders. Loan applicants have increased in recent times.

Banks will be competing with one another to offer loans in the coming months.

Nationalised banks have proposed to offer home loans up to Rs.30 lakh at the rate of 8.5 per cent for the first three consecutive years. As of now, the State Bank of India has the steepest reduction in interest rate on home loans between Rs.30 lakh and Rs.50 lakh. The interest rate will remain 8 per cent for the first year. It will be 8.5 in the second year from 9.5 in the third.

If this trend continues, more banks will be forced to take a cue from the big players.

The draft Direct Tax Code released on Wednesday gives an indication that growth in several sectors, especially the housing industry, will get a stimulus.
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Meet to lay road map for Kerala’s infrastructure

July 22nd, 2009

KOCHI: The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), in partnership with the State government, is organising a one-day conference on ‘Infrastructure in the time of economic crisis’ on Thursday 23 in the city. This conference is to lay a roadmap for improving the infrastructure in Kerala.

The conference will focus on improving physical infrastructure — roads, metros, railways, mobility hubs, ports, city development, low cost housing, funding options overcoming implementation challenges, policy prescriptions to create a five-point infrastructure agenda, creating world-class urban infrastructure and achieving inclusive growth and need for innovation.

Experts from the infrastructure space at the national level will initiate a dialogue at the conference and throw light on the implementation elsewhere in the country.

The government of Kerala will also exhibit the plans and proposals for project implementation, which will subsequently be taken up for discussion for furtherance.

In India, 28 per cent or 285 million people live in urban areas.

This will go up to 40 per cent by 2021. According to the Planning Commission, India needs an investment of $500 billion in the infrastructure sector from 2007 to 2012.

The Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission envisages an investment of $20 billion in urban infrastructure by 2012.

The government of India has identified a public-private partnership approach as the cornerstone of its policy and has been actively encouraging foreign direct investment in India’s infrastructure sector.

 

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