Realty hopes for a smart rejuvenation : The Tribune India

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Realty hopes for a smart rejuvenation

The beleaguered real estate sector, finally had something to cheer about this week with the Prime Minister formally launching three-pronged urban development programme with Smart Cities, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and Housing for All.

Realty hopes for a smart rejuvenation

  



Geetu Vaid

The beleaguered real estate sector, finally had something to cheer about this week with the Prime Minister formally launching three-pronged urban development programme with Smart Cities, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and Housing for All. The move that will pump in almost Rs4 lakh crore directly or indirectly in the realty-related projects, has been welcomed by stakeholders all over the country.

The Smart City and AMRUT projects will draw Rs48,000 crore and Rs50,000 crore, respectively, in central grants over the next five years, while through Housing for All by 2022 plan the government will spend Rs 3 lakh crore in the next seven years to help construct two crore residential units in the country.

Industry mavens termed this as a positive step towards creating an urban infrastructure required to make the economy efficient. “The process of building this urban infrastructure would lead to explosive economic growth as the execution of the vision would entail large scale consumption of cement, metals, plastics, materials and services. It would also lead to innovations and creation of spin-off technologies that would surely make India a global player in building future cities”, said Jaijit Bhattacharya, Partner, Infrastructure & Government Services, KPMG In India. According to Sam Chopra, Founder & Chairman-RE/MAX India the proof of this “smart urbanpudding” will be the way funds are utilised. “These schemes have great potential but it all depends upon the implementation and effective usage of the allocated investments”, he said.

Harshil Mehta, CEO, DHFL, said, “The Smart Cities & Housing For All initiative initiative is an ambitious move towards the growth and development of the country. The PPP economic model will play an effective role in the implementation of the project which is aimed at enhancing the quality of life in the proposed 100 cities by highlighting the importance of infrastructure and affordable housing. The process of urbanising India would lead to tremendous growth in the economy, encourage innovation and adoption of high-end technologies that would make India a global player in building future cities. The recognition of the necessity to urbanise India has laid down the platform to attract huge investments and create a large pool of employment opportunities, thereby contributing to the India growth story”.

With Punjab getting 3 Smart Cities and 17 cities under AMRUT and Haryana 2 Smart Cities and 19 AMRUT cities, besides Chandigarh figuring in the Smart Cities list developers having plans for this region maintained that market will gain some momentum as investor sentiment in smaller towns will be bolstered and increase the scope for realty projects. “The development of 100 smart cities and push for urban infrastructure upgrade for 500 cities through PPP model will breathe new life in our cities and throw up a lot of opportunities for the real estate which is going through rough patch over the past two years. The grounds-up approach towards giving a direction to how our cities grow is definitely praiseworthy considering the unorganised and haphazard development that has been happening in our cities”, said Mohit Goel, CEO, Omaxe Ltd. that has a number of projects coming up in this region. “A huge opportunity has unfolded with these three urban schemes taking firm shape, and we are geared up for this challenge”, he added.

Calling this a three-pronged approach for a better urban India KushagrAnsal, Director, Ansal Housing said, “It is imperative to understand that these three projects are forming a hierarchy of necessity for our country. Housing for All is the base, as it crucial to first make sure that everyone gets a roof over their head. In the middle will be the AMRUT plan as, rejuvenation and urban transformation is a need to move further towards smart living and get over from basic living. Finally, the cities that already meet the basic requirement are now looked upon to be made ready for the next level infrastructure".

With the road map in place, the strategy planning and effective execution will now be the major deciding factors that will owe to the success of this mission. “The main challenge for state governments and urban local bodies is to get things going by making effective use of huge investments, new technology and innovative methods in rejuvenating our cities,” added Goel.

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