DEHRADUN SEES REALTY BOOM

DEHRADUN, THE PICTURESQUE 'KNOWLEDGE CAPITAL' OF INDIA, IS FAST EMERGING AS A FAVOURED FIELD FOR NATIONAL REAL ESTATE PLAYERS.

With the wellknown hill station Mussoorie, a mere one-hour drive away, Dehradun has always been known for both its scenic beauty, location and the various institutes and schools based in and around the area. Capitalising on these assets, builders with a national presence are now exploring their options and setting up projects in commercial as well as residential segments.

Premier educational institutes like the Doon School, Welhams, the Indian Military Academy, Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, the Forest Research Institute, HNB Garhwal University, IIP and Doon University dot the cityscape. Enlarging this knowledge tank further, the state government is now developing Dehradun into an IT and BPO destination by providing a host of incentives to new industries like 100 per cent exemption on central excise for 10 years and on income tax for the first five years.

Says Pradeep Jain, Chairman, Parsvnath Developers whose company has recently received the final notification from the Central Government for the setting up of an IT/ITES, SEZ on Sahastra Dhara Road in the city "After being made the state capital, Dehradun has taken rapid strides towards industrialisation and urbanisation. It's an upcoming destination with a lot of potential and that too with an upside real estate market."

Avers Neeraj Aggrawal, CEO, GTM Builders and Promoters, slated to be coming up with the biggest approved group housing project in the hill station, GTM Forest & Health on NH-72, "Dehradun is the capital of the new-born state of Uttarakhand and thus has immense scope for development. With so many industries coming up because of the tax benefits offered by the state, the city is surely going to become a popular IT hub on the lines of Pune."

Spearheading the development in the township is the State Industrial Development Corporation of Uttaranchal Limited (SIDCUL) - a body that plays a pivotal role. SIDCUL is developing a Rs. 12 crore Pharma City in Sela Qui on Chakrata Road across more than 50 acres. In addition to this, it is setting up a 65-acre state-of-the-art Software Technology Park with intelligent buildings and a hitech habitat centre. An STPI earth station will also be established in the region.

The growth is in the right direction as can be gauged from what Jain points out, “A good number of IT/ITES professional working in the NCR region belong to this state."

Dehradun's realty market is also doing well. Remarks Sunirmol Dubey, a leading property consultant in the city, "Dehradun today has become a seller's market growing at a very healthy pace. Within two years, property here has appreciated over three times. There is a boom in commercial property as well. Every three years, there is a 15-20 per cent increase in rentals and rented property fetches 7.5 per cent returns per annum." Dubey feels that the main reasons for the rapid development are good climate and adequate infrastructure. "Several inherent advantages of Dehradun including a good climate, low crime rate, good infrastructure like power and water, prominent educational centres have also contributed to the property boom. The surging demand and pressure on supply has been driving real estate prices here," he adds.

As mentioned earlier the state capital has attracted developers from all over the country. Apart from Parsvnath and GTM Builders, other prominent developers operating in the region are Emaar-MGF, which has signed an agreement with the Uttarakhand government to soon build and run a five-star hotel and a convention centre in Dehradun. The Rs. 2 billion (US$49 million) new hotel and convention centre will be part of an integrated facility comprising a 10-acre retail and entertainment space. Then there is Prabhatam Buildwell, which is also planning mega township projects in cities like Bangalore, Kochi, Indore, Bhopal, Ranchi and Dhanbad apart from a project slated in Dehradun as well.

Because Dehradun is on the tourist map the Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA) is cashing in on the fact and developing a 28 acre tourist centre on the Rajpur Road costing Rs. 10 crore.

MDDA's Rs. 624 crore plan to develop Greater Doon on the Saharanpur-Haridwar bypass is also aimed at promoting tourism. A five-star hotel, a mall and recreational facilities will be the highlight here. Dehradun's Windlass Group and the Jaypee Group are also working out plans to develop fivestar hotels in the region.

Surely a case where tourism is in turn triggering a commercial and residential real estate boom.

Courtesy: ET, dtd: 27th Oct. 2007