Travelling on Mysore Road is a nightmare these days due to a number of potholes and lack of street lights, causing accidents almost every day.
Former mayor Sharadamma and her deputy S Harish had inspected the widening work many times. The current mayor, D Venkatesh Murthy, and Major Roads Infrastructure standing committee chairman Sridhar Reddy have also inspected the work a few times in the past five months, but there has hardly has been any progress.
The BBMP got a rude shock in June when it found that Cos Consultancy, which had been monitoring the work, didn’t have a laboratory in Bangalore. Hence, the Rs 22 lakh paid to the company for road quality maintenance went down the drain.
Chief engineer of BBMP’s major road infrastructure wing, Somashekhar, said, “We have been reviewing the project on a regular basis. According to the agreement between the BBMP and the contractor, the project should be completed by this November, but the progress is very slow. Soon we will issue a notice to the contractor, terminating the contract. Then, we will either invite fresh tenders for the pending work or we will make use of 4G exemption for works which are urgent in nature.”
More hurdles :He added, “There are more hurdles for execution of the project. The cable ducts of BSNL, Bescom and other utility services have to be removed. Bescom is yet to shift the electric poles for which payment has already been made. We have to acquire around 25 properties on the stretch towards Gali Anjaneya Temple and we have asked owners to make use of TDR (Transferable Development Rights). It is difficult for us to acquire properties as we can’t forcibly evict them. Options are being considered for settlement.”
On Friday, the mayor along with deputy mayor L Srinivas inspected the project site and was not satisfied with the progress of the works. He has asked officials to complete the work on war-footing.
“The work is being executed at a snail’s pace. I have asked officials to cancel the deal with the current contractor and ask a new contractor to execute it.”
Meanwhile, BDA’s construction of level one of the two-level flyover at Nayandahalli junction is nearing completion though the work has dragged on for almost three years. The flyover was expected to be completed by March 2012.
Signal-free junction :The two-level flyover will be the first of its kind in the city and will make the junction signal-free.
BDA’s engineering member T N Chikkarayappa said, “The first level of the flyover will be completed by this month. It will considerably ease traffic congestion at the junction. Motorists from Banashankari direction can use this level to head towards Nagarbhavi. The other level of the flyover will be completed in the next six months.”
The Bangalore-Mysore highway, one of the most happening stretches -- thanks to 24/7 coffee shops, variety of restaurants all along the corridor -- is waking up to a different culture now: wine drinking. Six months ago, when Heritage Winery started wine tourism near Channapatna, about 90 km from Bangalore, it was completely a new concept in the area which is predominantly a rural and semi-urban belt.
Today, when visitors travelling on the highway see the winery boards, they want to stop by and check out the new place, the vineyard, watch the wine-making process from crushing to bottling. And in the tasting room, they will be taught to swirl, sniff and sip wines. The winery gets an average 20-25 guests every day. Numbers go up during vacations, with even international tourists making day trips to the vineyards.
Located on a 11-acre vineyard, the winery is 4 km off the highway (road going inside next to Kadamba Hotel) near Channapatna. A trip to the winery comprises a guided tour -- visit to the vineyard, winery, a first-hand experience of wine manufacturing process and finally wine tasting.
“We have put up boards on the highway about wine tourism. We are getting a good number of visitors. Initially, it was the young crowd that frequented our winery. Now, even families visit us along with the children. We have also had a lot of visitors from France, who came to the winery from Bangalore. Students from MBA, hotel management, BSc and microbiology courses also drop by,” says marketing head K R Rajanna. The winery has several packages, including the traditional grape-stomping with music, organised for big groups.
According to horticulture deputy director Ramanagaram B Krishna, wine tourism is catching up in the region. A winery situated on the highway has proved to be an ideal location for high-end travellers too. “People are taking a liking to wine drinking and the industry is also creating a job market in the region,” says Krishna, who was the former state wine board chairman and was instrumental in pushing the wine tourism concept.
Bangalore-Mysore highway is one of the most prominent locations to promote wine tourism, says Robin Somaiah, a wine manufacturer and the CEO of Surya Devine.
“Wine making is something people have always been interested in, but had no opportunity to be a part of the process. With wine tourism, not only can they visit the vineyard and winery, they can also see how wine is made, the difficulty in growing grapes, the amount of grapes required to make a bottle of wine, etc. With the state government's wine policy, a lot of wineries are coming forward to be a part of wine tourism,” says Somaiah.
Post liberalisation of wine policy, prices have been slightly reduced in the form of duties and the move has also given a boost to wine tourism. Earlier, what was a restricted area -- entry into the winery -- is a now a part of tourism promotion.
Another winery, Grover Wines in Doddaballapur, is also into promoting wine tourism.
According to Naveen Nandwani, Director-Bangalore, Cushman and Wakefield, “Bidadi, situated on the Bangalore-Mysore expressway, houses a large automobile cluster with Toyota Kirloskar Motor Corporation occupying about 432 acres of land for its manufacturing factory. An area of about 200-250 acres has been allocated for Toyota auto suppliers and ancillary manufacturers. Auto majors tend to attract other auto related manufacturers in areas where the main manufacturing unit is set up and so the industrial growth of Bidadi is mostly governed by the growth of the automotive sector.”
Bidadi also has a cola factory and a 1,400 MW combined cycle gas-based power plant. Apart from the automobile industry, a large number of manufacturing units of plastic industry are present here. Metal and engineering, fabrication, furniture and interiors, textile, printing, electronics, packaging and telecommunications industries are also situated here. Bosch has acquired 97 acres of land for construction of its new manufacturing unit in Bidadi and will relocate in two phases. Industrial growth in Mysore too has been catching up. According to S Raghunathan, Chariman, CII – Mysore Zone, and Senior Vice President, Meritor HVS (India) Ltd., “Mysore has all along been a pensioner’s paradise, but when the connectivity with Bangalore improved substantially many people found it attractive to live and do business here. The industries here are doing very well, generating employment and improving the local economy. Since most of these industries are of the manufacturing sector, they generate ancillaries and support the other industries. This helps the investment climate”.
According to an official from the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) acquisition of 270 acres of land for industrial areas has been completed in K R Pet Taluk. Another 250 acres of land has been acquired by KIADB in Kadakola in Nanjangud Taluk. A further 400 acres of industrial land is available at Koorgalli. “We have a good future for engineering industries as the city is a hub for engineering manufacturers,” says Suresh Kumar Jain, General Secretary, Mysore Industries Association and Vice President, Laghu Udyoga Bharati, Karnataka.
According to him, at the recently-concluded Global Investors’ Meet, a MoU was signed to develop 65 acres of industrial area in Koorgalli for small and medium scale units at a cost of Rs 128 crores. Of this, Rs 50 crores will come from the Government of India for cluster development. Around 3,000 industries will be benefitted under this scheme over the next two years. Under this development model, there will be certain common facilities for the industries like quality testing, video conferencing, power, water and precision testing.
“What is unique about the industrial growth here is that you will find 6,500 acres in a single stretch unlike other cities where industrial areas are in various pockets scattered in all directions,” explains Suresh. “Another 2,500 acres will soon be available in Manuganahalli, H D Kote Road, Belagola and Koorgalli,” he adds.
Residential Catchments :Banashankari, Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Hosakerahalli, Uttarahalli and Kengeri are the prominent residential catchment areas towards Mysore. In the Uttarahalli-Kengeri stretch some prominent projects are coming up. Further towards Mysore, many villa projects are under construction. Apart from this, mostly plotted developments are present and more similar projects are coming up. Preference for plotted developments has been witnessed in this stretch towards Mysore.
Development from Metro :The Metro Rail too has several stations on the Mysore Road – Mysore Road, Nayandahalli, Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Bangalore University Cross, R V College of Engineering and Kengeri stations. “Metro work from Magadi Road to Mysore Road station is about 60-70 percent complete and is expected to open by 2014. The Metro connectivity is giving a boost and some prominent developers have ventured into this south-west pocket of the city. In the long term, the advent of the Metro is expected to contribute to growth of this pocket,” says Naveen.
Global Technology Village :Global Village (GV) is located at a distance of 12 kms from Bangalore on the Bangalore - Mysore Expressway. Spread over 120 acres of greenery, the project will house a cluster of technology companies in a campus type setting. The Buildings nestle among the lush green of manicured lawns, coconut palms and an eclectic mix of old trees in a serene and dust free environment. The Technology Campus has been conceptualized and designed by a team of reputed Indian and international architects and landscape designers. Global Village is easily accessible by road being strategically located on the Bangalore - Mysore Expressway. The estimated driving time to GV from the heart of Bangalore city is approximately 20 minutes. Ample residential facilities are in close proximity to the campus. MindTree, MphasiS, Keane (company), Sonata Software and Texas Instruments are a few of the many companies present in the tech park at present.
The company plans to move its manufacturing activities and related support functions to Bidadi in two phases from 2012-13 to 2015-16.
The company in a release said that it has acquired 97 acres in Bidadi for the construction of the new manufacturing facility and will invest nearly Rs 600 crore for development of the facility in both phases.
Detailing the phases of shift, the company said that in 2012 - 13, plant construction will be taken up and some 1,000 employees will shift to the Bidadi premises. In 2015 - 16, the construction for the second phase will begin and see the shifting of 3,000 employees to the new centre.
The company inaugurated its Bangalore plant located in Adugodi 60 years ago and said that no further expansion is possible at this location. The company, however, plans to retain the Adugodi location, which will continue to be its headquarters in India.
The space made available by the relocation will be used by Bosch to expand the Bosch R&D; Centre and Robert Bosch Engineering & Business Solutions (India) to create a technology and engineering centre.
Also on its own, the government plans to build four Logistics Parks with a total investment of Rs 1,800 crore through private partnership route.
To facilitate development across the state, the Infrastructure Development Department has initiated moves to build Logistics Parks in Bangalore, Hassan and Hubli on public-private partnership (PPP) mode. According to a senior Infrastructure Development Department (IDD) official, the government is looking for an integrated approach by providing multi-modal/integrated logistics transport centre, warehouses, inland container depots, domestic rail head, and air cargo centres.
Invites registrations of interests :Logistics Parks are to come up at Harohalli Industrial Area in Bangalore with an investment of Rs 500 crore, Dabbaspet (Rs 600 crore), Hassan (Rs 350 crore) and Hubli (Rs 350 crore).
The department has invited registration of interests (RoI) from global, national companies and is open to joint ventures and consortia for development of logistics parks.
An industries department official said the projects cleared recently are Vikram Logistics and Maritime Services which is investing Rs 342.59 crore to set up logistics services at Maranaikanahally and Samanduru villages in Anekal.
The project is to come up on 120 acres of land owned by one of the directors of the company.
It is likely to give employment to 675 people. Property developer Gopalan Enterprises is to build a warehouse at Cheelur village Maralvadi hobli in Kanakapura with an investment of Rs 188 crore and offer employment to 5,000 people.
The promoters of the project have sought 104.06 acres of land.
The government has instructed project proponent to obtain consent to an extent of 70 per cent from the land owners for further assistance.
The Gurgaon-based Siddhivinayaka Farm Fresh is to set up a muti-commodity agri-cold chain network and logistic hub at Vishwanathapura near Devanahalli. The project is to come up on 11 acres on a private land at an investment of Rs 160.66 crore.
Magna Warehousing and Distribution Private Ltd with an investment of Rs 381 crore to develop spaces and infrastructure for IT offices, hotel rooms, meeting spaces and convention, shopping including food courts, restaurants, cinema, departmental stores to complement with the location at EPIP industrial areas at Hoodi Village next to Sri Sathya Sai Hospital at Whitefield.
A statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office here on Monday said that the projects cleared would generate 1.15 lakh jobs.
Indo Nissin, a subsidiary of Nissin Foods, the world's leading noodle manufacturing Japanese company, is setting up a new manufacturing facility in Harohalli Industrial Area, with an investment of Rs.160 crore, a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office said.
KAPCI Coatings India Pvt. Ltd., an Egyptian based company is establishing a paint manufacturing facility in Harohalli Industrial Area with an investment of Rs 55 crore.
The logistics parks are proposed to be set up at Harohalli Industrial Area in Bangalore with an investment of Rs 500 crore and at Dabbaspet with Rs 600 crore investment. The logistics parks at Hassan and Hubli will each entail an investment of Rs 350 crore. The IDD has invited registration of interests (RoI) from global and domestic companies for development of logistics parks.
According to a report by real estate consultancy firm PropEquity, apartment sales in NCR dropped by 42% in January-August 2012, compared with the same period last year. In contrast, the average price has risen 14% to Rs 3,797 per sq ft so far this year.
Market watchers explain that areas like Gurgaon — where prices have almost doubled in the past two years — have virtually reached saturation point. Developers are being forced to launch new projects in remote areas with undeveloped infrastructure. Hence, they are finding it difficult to sell units there.
According to Sanjay Dutt, Executive Managing Director – India, Cushman and Wakefield, “a number of factors will act as catalysts for the growth and sustenance of office space demand such as improvements in infrastructure, connectivity and the quality of supply. Additionally, more companies are looking at rationalising their real estate portfolio by relocating and/or consolidating their wide-spread operations, besides actually growing their businesses. This is expected to lead to an increase in leasing activity and also add to the net absorption. Cities such as Bangalore which are expected to witness lower demand-supply gap will see rental increases over the next five years.”
FDI in real estate :The realty outlook for the coming months depends on more investor-friendly measures. One such measure is the introduction of FDI in the real estate sector. Karun Varma, Managing Director – Bangalore and Kochi, Jones Lang LaSalle India, says, “The market environment needs to be rendered more investment friendly, and FDI is of immense importance to real estate in India. While banks have aided most of the development in the past, the cost of debt is getting higher by the day. Also, in any high-risk project, a bank loan is expensive and very limited. The strict guidelines introduced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) last year have made real estate lending even more expensive and cumbersome.”
He further adds that unlike most developed economies, India does not allow Real Estate Investment Trusts. With all these routes being plugged because of the risk involved, FDI is clearly the only life-saver which the real estate sector can look up to. The sector is in need of investor-friendly streamlined policies from the government, 100 percent FDI in most real estate segments with relaxation of certain agreeable parameters, having a dedicated regulatory body and ramping up the speed of the approval process. These coupled with increased transparency, adapting modern designs and technology for improved project execution and timely delivery from the industry are essential for attracting FDI, explains Varma.
Office space demand :“The city is expected to witness supply addition of approximately 31 million sq ft in the coming five years, while demand is expected to be in the range of 31 million sq ft, leaving the gap between supply and demand to less than one percent of over-supply. The city has witnessed the highest absorption during 2011 and is expected to witness healthy absorption in the coming few years as well. It is likely to have the lowest demand-supply gap due to slow supply additions and steady absorption levels. Rentals are expected to increase in select locations of the city,” says Sanjay.
(Source: Times Property, The Times of India, Bangalore)
Demand for retail spaces set for uptrend :FDI in retail is good news for the realty sector.It will also create more jobs which in turn will fuel demand for housing apart from retail spaces,writes Ashish Gupta
Foreign direct investment (FDI) can now flow into the retail sector.It is naturally expected that FDI in multi-brand retail will open up many doors for the real estate sector too.Further,the recent announcement by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) of a strong growth in the services sector is good news too.It will push demand for commercial property.
The decision to allow FDI in the multi-brand retail sector will push the real estate sector as there will be an increased demand for commercial spaces.Also,it is expected to create more jobs.This will propel the demand for residential property as well.
According to analysts,the requirement of residential space is five times that of the commercial space used in a city.As such,if the demand for commercial space remains strong,it will boost the demand for residential real estate too.It will open up immense opportunities for developers in the medium to long terms,as the demand for quality real estate will rise.Large investments by international retailers in real estate for retail store and warehouse spaces are on the cards.
The services sector has been one of the country's core sectors over the past decade,as its contribution to the GDP has significantly increased from 50 percent in the financial year 1996 to 63 percent in the financial year 2012.In the financial year 2012,when all the other sectors,including industrial and agriculture,performed poorly,at an average of 3.1 percent growth,the services sector recorded a healthy growth rate of 8.5 percent.
More jobs :The liberalisation will translate into generating increased employment opportunities in the country which in turn will enhance the economic growth rate.Increased employment means increased disposable income which in turn increases the demand for housing.The real estate industry will benefit immensely due to the substantial increase in demand for high quality retail spaces and housing.
The government's move to allow 51 percent FDI in multibrand retail will attract investments and change the retail landscape.In the medium to long terms,the retail sector,real estate industry and endusers will benefit from the move.It will create demand for retail space and boost development of malls in the country.
Prices set to rise :Property prices will firm up in the future.With the arrival of new companies there will be huge demand of retail spaces in cities.This is expected to have a positive impact on the realty sector.The foreign brands will need to set up stores.These stores have to be near consumers.So,the most likely places for such stores will be commercial hubs.
Further,organisations find substantial buying power in smaller towns and cities.So they will target such smaller town and cities too.Here,the cost of realty as well as manpower is lesser as compared to metros like Bangalore.
These stores need thousands of square feet of space.They also need storage space.All this is bound to escalate the price of commercial property.
In the first quarter of the current fiscal, 15.58 million sq ft of residential space was sold in the city, giving it a total market share of 13.9%, property research firm PropEquity said. In comparison, property sales in Mumbai Metropolitan Region and National Capital region fell by 60% and 57%, at 15.98 mn sq ft and 28.86 mn sq ft, respectively. The trend continued into the second quarter.
“Bangalore is witnessing higher offtake compared to other bigger realty markets in the country despite challenging times,” said Pirojsha Godrej, managing director and chief executive officer of Godrej Properties, which is in the process of launching projects totalling 4 million sq ft over the next few months.
Experts say Bangalore’s real estate market is growing due to a combination of factors such as a higher percentage of end users among buyers than in the other cities and a relatively moderate price escalation.
In 2011-12, the southern cities, including Bangalore, contributed nearly 40% to the country’s home loan disbursals of Rs 1.95 lakh crore. Since April, LIC Housing Finance garnered around 14.5% of the total home loan business from the Bangalore region, compared with 12% in the corresponding period last year.
“Bangalore property market is leading both in terms of loan disbursement and sanction,” said VK Sharma, CEO of LIC Housing Finance.
Delhi-NCR and Mumbai witnessed a sharp drop of over 40% in property sales in 2012 compared with the previous year, mainly due to multiple increases in home loan rates and inflated property prices. The southern cities, including Bangalore, did not see such a sharp downturn partly due to the turnaround in the IT sector.
“Sentiment was bearish due to worries about macroeconomic growth trickling down to job security and increments. But policy level changes will result in improvement in sentiments and the pent-up demand is likely to be converted hereon,” said Niranjan Hiranandani, managing director of Hiranandani Group.
According to the Confederation of Real Estate Association of India (CREDAI), new launches in the bigger markets of Mumbai and Delhi have fallen by 50% and 57%, respectively. “Lack of project approvals has restricted new property supply. Additionally, contribution requirement from home loan seekers has gone up to 40-45% as loans are now being disbursed excluding stamp duty, registration and other taxes , thus impacting sales,” said Lalit Kumar Jain, president, CREDAI.
“NCR has seen a drop in home sales because work in Noida extension was stalled for many months. The Noida region was also impacted because of elections in Uttar Pradesh,” said Sameer Jasuja, chief executive officer at PropEquity.
While prices in Mumbai and Delhi crossed the peak levels of 2007, the builders in Bangalore did not increase prices by as much, contributing to a healthy offtake. Further, new launches in south India, including Bangalore, are still primarily in the Rs 4,000 per sq ft range compared with many parts of the NCR and Mumbai, where the range is Rs 7,000-10,000 per sq ft range.
“Job addition in the IT sector coupled with increase in absorption of commercial property is leading to the growth of the sector. The city is more viable for home buyers as the properties are still affordable here,” said JC Sharma, vice-chairman and managing director of Sobha Developers.
(Reference : Economic Times)The Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development Finance Corporation ( KIUDFC) has proposed to develop about 8,005 sq km area coming under the jurisdiction of Bangalore Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA) as a "city cluster development project".
"BMRDA has planned to set up five satellite townships and develop them as self-sustainable cities. The state government had approved a BMRDA proposal in this regard in June 2006," said Suresh Kumar, minister of law and urban development department.
The proposal is now before the Centre for its approval.
Under the city cluster development project, Bidadi (in Ramnagara taluk) will be developed as Knowledge City. Ramanagara will be developed as Healthcare city, Sathanur in Kanakapura taluk will be developed as Textile/Apparel city, Solur in Magadi taluk will be a Manufacturing city and Nandagudi in Hoskote will come up as Hardware/Manufacturing city. These five towns around Bangalore will be connected to the Outer Ring Road (ORR) of Bangalore through four-lane expressways.
The minister also said that some of the key projects under this plan, especially the establishment of the international airport at Devanahalli and completion of the proposed peripheral road, will put a number of urban settlements such as Nelamangala, Doddaballapur, Vijayapura, Hoskote and Malur on the path of rapid development.
"The structure plan has identified the five development corridors as a measure of dispersed concentration. Some of the emerging spatial patterns in the BMR growth are Bangalore-Hosur Industrial Development Corridor, Bangalore-Whitefield Corridor, Bangalore-Nelamangala-Tumkur Corridor, New International Airport Corridor and Bangalore-Ramanagara-Bidadi Corridor. Asian Development Bank has also identified the Bangalore-Tumkur-Mysore City Cluster as one of the fastest growing urban regions in India," said Kumar.
4 heritage cities planned :The government is also planning to develop Bidar, Gulburga, Badami and Mysore as heritage cities. These cities will be provided world-class sanitation, road and other infrastructural facilities. The World Bank has proposed a grant of Rs 500 crore for this project.
24x7 water to 13 towns : Yadgir, Shahbad, Nippani and Gokak will be fully covered for 24x7 water supply. Haveri, Bidar, Bellary, Hospet, Raichur, Sindhanur, Chamrajnagar, Gadag-Betagiri and Basavakalyan will be partly covered under the project to provide 24x7 drinking water supply.
