168mn sq ft unsold in Mumbai Metropolitan Region

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 Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) has an unsold inventory of 168 million sq ft. These apartments will take 45 months to sell, a large time lag considering it should not take more than eight months to a year. The data comes from the latest Liases Foras report released on Thursday . "This huge unsold inventory is a clear indication that buyers cannot afford high property rates,'' said Pankaj Kapoor, head of this real estate research firm. MMR comprises Mumbai, Dahisar to Virar, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Dombivli, Kalyan and Diva as the main centres. The weighted average price in MMR is Rs 13,012 a sq ft, which was hovering around Rs 12,748 a sq ft in the last quarter. The report also revealed that sales dipped by a marginal 2% from the last quarter. Most new projects launched in the present quarter had a price tag of over Rs 2 crore for an apartment. "We predict prolonged inefficiency, prices have to reduce for demand to increase. Sales won't improve till prices reduce,'' said Kapoor. Earlier, prices increased 7-8% per quarter. "This is not happening now. It's a stagnant situation,'' he added. "The year 2014-15 began on a rather muted note with a 9% sequential decline in area sales across six major cities in India. With an exception of Bangalore, all tier I cities have shown a drop in sales. The city registered a 10% growth in sales for the quarter,'' said the report. NCR led with a 20% decline, followed by Chennai and Hyderabad with 18% and 13%. MMR, however, was almost stagnant with a meagre 2% drop in sales. For the first quarter of 2014-15, sales in Bangalore have been the highest, followed by NCR and Pune. "Most sales in the city can be attributable to new launches in peripheral regions. But the performance in the secondary market has been average in the city,'' it added. The cost range for new launches has been fragmented across the cities. In NCR and Pune it has been the affordable segment, while in Bangalore it has been the mid-segment. At the same time, MMR showed increased level of activity in the affordable and ultra-luxury segment.

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Weathermen expect 90-95% of rainfall in Aug, lakes and dams inch towards overflow mark





A heavy downpour in the 24 hours between Monday and Tuesday added 32 days of water stock to the seven lakes supplying the city. The lakes now have four months' supply. Also, not only has the season's rainfall deficit been covered but Santa Cruz has got excess rainfall of 78.1mm and Colaba 101.5mm. Weather men have issued a warning of very heavy rainfall-from 7cm to 14cm--in the next 24 hours. Some parts of Thane and Konkan districts may get as much as 24cm.

Between Monday and Tuesday , though, the island city got just 48.3mm and Santa Cruz 26.6mm.
On the other hand, the Vasai-Virar region, Palghar, Dahanu and tribal belts of Jawahar and Mokhada got 176mm, which saw villages get cut off from the city and flooded important roads and residential townships such as Vasant Nagri, Evershine Nagar Nirman Nagar.

The Vasai Virar municipal fire brigade rescued villagers stranded along the highway in Virar. A 10-year-old boy was reportedly carried away by strong water currents in Palghar.

Pelhar dam in Nala Sopara that supplies Vasai-Virar began to overflow. Usgaon dam in the Vasai-Virar region reached 86% of its capacity . Damni dam on Surya river in Palghar also began to overflow.

Water stock in the seven lakes that feed the Mumbai region swelled to 4.9 lakh million litres on Tuesday from 3.7 lakh million litres on Monday .
Tansa and Bhatsa gained the most, 276mm and 247mm, respectively , compared with 66mm and 45mm between Sunday and Monday . Modak Sagar is 3 metres below the overflow mark and Vihar is 4 metres short.

"Bhatsa and Modak Sagar, which have a huge capacity , received widespread rainfall of 247mm and 216mm, respectively . Tulsi is much smaller, which could be why it overflowed. Interior parts of Maharashtra received moderate rainfall while it was fairly widespread in north madhya Maharashtra. The south-west monsoon has been very vigorous on account of an offshore trough as well as strong winds. We expect 95-96% of rainfall in August, of the long-range forecast," said K S Hosalikar, deputy director general meteorology , Regional Meteorological Centre, Mumbai.

Navi Mumbai, between 7am to 7.30pm, got an average rainfall of 50.6mm. Airoli recorded the highest of 63mm followed by Vashi with 50mm, Nerul with 43mm and Belapur 44mm. Morbe dam capacity increased to 77.9 metres from Monday's 76.4 metres.

Thane got a total of 55mm rainfall. There was one inci dent of wall collapse at Wagle Estate and one person was reported missing while swimming inside a lake at Kalwa.

The downpour brought down minimum temperatures in Colaba to 24.8 degrees Celsius and Santa Cruz to 25.7.

On Tuesday , between 8.30am and 8.30pm, Colaba recorded 11.6mm rainfall and Santa Cruz 45.3mm. The is land city and the suburbs have received more than 50% of the season's required total.

Meanwhile, traffic was comparatively smooth on Tuesday , as it was a public holiday. There some stretches, though, like the Western Express Highway which continued to witness snarls.

The cratered flyover at Malad on WEH caused backlogs around noon. "The northbound stretch of Pedder Road was jammed around 3 pm. The stretch before Mahalaxmi signal was particularly bad," said another motorist.

Slow-moving traffic was reported from Babulnath to Haji Ali, on S V Road opposite Juhu Aerodrome, Vasai, near Huma Adlabs at Kanjur Marg, Aarey flyover on WEH, near Dahisar check naka and near Dindoshi on WEH.

A tree fall threw traffic out of gear at near Hiranandani Junction at Powai.

Heavy water logging was reported at JVLR, Andheri Link Road, Kanjur Marg, L B S Marg near Gandhi Nagar, Sujay Hospital at Andheri East, Andheri Subway and Marol Naka to WEH.





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State stays coast body bid to name Mahim a bay





The state government has stayed the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority's (MCZMA) controversial decision to declare Mahim shore as a bay and the clearing of building proposals near the coast, including a prime 5.5-acre Prabhadevi plot.

Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan put the brakes following a July 4 TOI expose on how the authority cleared builder Hubtown's Hindustan Mill plot at Prabhadevi for development by removing it from the coastal regulation zone (CRZ). The state urban development department headed by Chavan and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation both strongly objec

ted to the MCZMA's "unilateral" decision.

"MCZMA's unilateral decision to redefine parts of Mumbai's coastline as a bay would have serious implications for the city's town planning. It was a reckless decision," said a senior government official.

The Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority's (MCZMA) "unilateral" decision to declare Mahim a bay has been put on hold by the state government.

A government official said the urban development department will have to be consulted and its view sought on the issue. "Till then, all decisions have been put on hold, and MCZMA will not be allowed to clear any such proposal."

The "Mahim bay" was a windfall for builders, whose plots are located near the coast and whose development potential was restricted because of CRZ norms which severely restrict construction activity 500 m from the high tide line.

However, a 2011 amendment to the CRZ rule allowed the distance to be reduced to just 100 m for areas declared as "bay". Once MCZMA declared Mahim as a bay , Hubtown submitted a proposal to get its plot removed from the CRZ. Several more builders with plots similarly located were ready with their proposals for environmental clearance from the MCZMA. All these have now been put on hold, it is learnt.

Hubtown's proposal was cleared by the MCZMA in its meeting in May end. But last week, urban development department secretary Manu Kumar Srivastava and civic chief Sitaram Kunte forced the authority to back off following instructions from CM Chavan.
Incidentally , state environment secretary R A Rajeev , who heads the authority , was one of the several bureaucrats transferred on Wednesday .

Sources said the two bureaucrats told MCZMA officials last week that the authority could not "unilaterally" decide on an issue which could have widespread ramifications for Mumbai's town-planning. Both Kunte and Srivastava are members of the MCZMA, and the decision to declare Mahim as a bay was taken in their absence, said sources. After the two officers protested, MCZMA redrafted its minutes of the meeting, which now showed that the Hubtown proposal is "placed for deliberation and further appropriate decision in the matter."

Government officials said several other building proposals falling under CRZ will now be sent to the Chennai-based Institute of Remote Sensing for clarification. Environmentalists and activists had expressed concern about the Mahim bay definition. They said other parts of the city like Marine Drive, Cuffe Parade, Churchgate and parts of Malad too could then be redefined as bays to help builders. TIMES VIEW: It's for experts to decide whether the sea off Mahim can be called a bay or not after taking into account its overall ramifications on the city's development and environment. But the flip-flop on the issue indicates the government is not working as a team. One wing taking a decision and two other agencies staying it sends out confusing signals, which does not help either the government or the city.





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Raj Bhavan cuts power bill by Rs 14L, sets example for housing societies





British-era buildings, with their high ceilings and massive rooms are known to consume huge quantities of power. The 150year-old Raj Bhavan on Malabar Hill was no exception. But in an example for far humbler abodes in the city, it has adopted a series of green measures, reducing its power bill by Rs 14 lakh during the 2013-14 financial year.

The feat has won the 48acre compound an award by the recently concluded national green energy campaign instituted by the Maharashtra Energy Development Agency (MEDA).

The compound, which, besides the governor's official residence, comprises guest houses and over 200 staff quarters, saved 1.35 lakh units of power in the last fiscal over the previous one by using only energy-efficient appliances and devices, and solar-energy panels. Raj Bhavan invested over Rs 78 lakh on the green project, and is expected to recover the cost in six years.

Power experts say the pro ject can be replicated by housing societies and townships to reduce power consumption.

"The project was started in 2012-13, resulting in a sav ing of Rs 8 lakh on Raj Bhavan's power bill. We hope to take the current financial year's saving to Rs 16 lakh," said Vasant Salunkhe, comp troller of the governor's households. "The measures included the use of only LED lighting, even for street lights, five-star (power-saving) ver sions of appliances like water heaters, ceiling fans and ACs, use of energy-efficient elevators and generation of solar power."

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State govt makes conversion of agricultural land simpler





In a move that could boost development in Maharashtra, the state cabinet has simplified the process to convert agricultural land in cities and towns into nonagricultural land. The owners of these plots will no longer have to take prior permission of the collector for the conversion if the plots are earmarked in the region's devel opment plan for residential townships or industrial units.

The collector's nod, which was so far mandatory, had given rise to complaints of undue delays and corruption. The move will pare both, officials said. By rough estimates, tens of thousands of hectares will be unlocked because of the cabinet's Wednesday decision. The state cabinet decision to simplify conversion of agricultural land for non-agricultural use will benefit the municipal corporations and councils in Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Kalyan-Dombivli, Ulhasnagar, Vasai-Virar, Nalasopara, Ambernath, Kulgaon-Badlapur, Panvel, Alibaug, among other places.

"Land owners will have to seek the permission of the municipal body for their non-agricultural plans.
Once the municipal corporation or municipal council gives the go-ahead, the owner just needs to intimate the collector within 30 days. No permission from the collector is required. Revenue officials will then recover a onetime land conversion tax and a non-agriculture cess," said an official after the state cabinet approved the move.

This process will apply to those who are direct owners of the land. For those who have leased land from the government, the collector's permission is still required, though the conversion procedure has been made simpler for them as well. "The leaseholder will have to offer a certain share of the profitable deal on the land to the government," said an official.

According to sources, masses of application for In rural areas, a databank will be created to speedily dispose of the masses of land conversion applications land conversion to non-agricultural use are pending, particularly in Mumbai region and around, stalling development. In rural areas, where there are no municipal corporations or councils, revenue officials will now be asked to create a databank of conversion applications, so that decisions can be made quickly , another official said.

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Affordable housing to become cheaper





Home loan seekers will soon find themselves being increasingly wooed by banks, and affordable housing projects could get cheaper with the RBI announcing a raft of measures that encourage bank lending to this segment.

The RBI has said that in addition to small-value loans, home loans to individuals up to Rs 50 lakh (for houses of value up to Rs 65 lakh) in metros and loans up to Rs 40 lakh (home value Rs 50 lakh) in other centres will be considered as affordable housing.
Extending these loans will entitle banks to float infrastructure bonds up to seven years. Money raised under these bonds will not be subject to RBI's mandatory reserve requirements. Bankers said that they were preparing for a pick-up in home loans in light of the increase in tax breaks from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 2 lakh. "The infrastructure status to affordable housing projects would make it easier for developers to get finance. Banks in any case were going after home loans given the absence of pick-up in corporate credit," said K R Kamath, chairman, Punjab National Bank.

He added that banks also prefer home loans because these are less risky as the lending is diversified and also provides them an opportunity to cross-sell other services to borrowers.

"The measures make home loans more attractive but I do not know to what extent it will impact rates as most banks are already extending home loans close to their base rate," said Kamath. Base rate is the benchmark rate below which banks are not allowed to price their loans.

The finance minister in the Budget had said that banks would be allowed to float long-term bonds for lending to infrastructure.
Explaining the rationale to extend this facility for hous ing, the RBI said "Apart from what is technically defined as infrastructure, affordable housing is another segment of the economy which both requires long-term funding and is of critical importance. Accordingly , the Reserve Bank intends to ease the way for banks to raise long-term resources to finance their long-term loans to infrastructure as well as affordable housing. This will help promote both growth and stability , as well as improve the supply side."

The RBI said that granting the exemptions will mitigate the asset-liability management (ALM) problems faced by banks in extending project loans to infrastructure and core industries sectors. "A collateral benefit if bank bond issuances prove successful is the development of the domestic corporate bond market," the RBI said.

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Builder can get extra FSI for public parking

A developer of a prime Prabhadevi plot is the first major beneficiary of the state coastal authority's intriguing redefinition of the Mahim shore as a bay. The reclassification has virtually pulled builder Hubtown's 5.3-acre land out of the highly-restrictive coastal regulation zone (CRZ), unlocking its full development potential. CRZ norms restrict construction activity up to 500m from the sea's high tide line. But the rules were qualified in an amendment three years ago. The amendment stipulated that seafronts would continue to get the same protection, but at bays the construction restriction would be reduced from 500m to just 100m. When the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) redefined the Mahim coast as a bay earlier this year, the builder quickly submitted a proposal to get its plot removed from CRZ and the 500m protection ring. Hubtown backed its application with a report from the Institute of Remote Sensing (IRS) in Chennai, showing the plot almost outside the 100m zone of the Mahim coast. The builder's proposal "convinced" the authority , which approved it in a meeting in May end. "The IRS report shows a part of the plot in CRZ and a part outside it. The actual demarcation has been done by IRS. The coastal authority accepted the IRS report and decided the CRZ status accordingly ," said a state environmental department official. Officials said this is the first big instance of development enabled by the redefinition of Mahim as a "bay". In the wake of Mahim coast's reclassification as a bay—where environmental protections are weaker—government officials expect a rush of applications from builders across the city whose plots fall under coast regulation zone (CRZ). Hubtown had purchased the defunct Hindoostan Mills in Prabhadevi for Rs 350 crore in 2007, but was unable to utilize the full development potential because of CRZ restrictions. Last year, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan cancelled an abnormally high floor space index (FSI) of 7.6 sanctioned by his predecessor for a hotel project on the property. The developer was eventually left with a much-reduced FSI of 1.33 because of the CRZ restrictions. Several of these impediments have got lifted because of the MCZMA's decision on Mahim coast. The plot was earlier reserved solely for industrial use and its status could not be changed to build residential buildings as it fell under CRZ. But now that it has been taken out of CRZ, its reservation can be changed for residential purposes. Also, with the plot virtually removed from CRZ, the builder can now procure additional construction rights under the government's public parking policy. The state provides extra FSI to any builder who builds a public parking facility on a part of his land free of cost for the civ ic administration. Vimal Shah of Hubtown said the builder's immediate plan was to utilize the base FSI of 1.33 to build a residential complex instead of a hotel. "It is shocking that environmental agencies are allowing builders to reduce the extent of the CRZ belt from 500 metres to 100 metres," said Debi Goenka, executive trustee of the Mumbai-based Conservation Action Trust. "Unlike creeks and estuaries, the entire frontage of the bay is impacted by wave and tidal action twice a day. Therefore the logic that was used to reduce the width of the CRZ along creeks from 500 metres to 100 metres obviously cannot be applied to bays," said Goenka.  

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Prime 5.3-acre Prabhadevi plot freed from CRZ norms





Builder Gains As State Dubs Mahim A Bay

A developer of a prime Prabhadevi plot is the first major beneficiary of the state coastal authority's intriguing redefinition of the Mahim shore as a bay. The reclassification has virtually pulled builder Hubtown's 5.3-acre land out of the highly-restrictive coastal regulation zone (CRZ), unlocking its full development potential.

CRZ norms restrict construction activity up to 500m from the sea's high tide line. But the rules were qualified in an amendment three years ago. The amendment stipulated that seafronts would continue to get the same protection, but at bays the construction restriction would be reduced from 500m to just 100m. When the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) redefined the Mahim coast as a bay earlier this year, the builder quickly submitted a proposal to get its plot removed from CRZ and the 500m protection ring. Hubtown backed its application with a report from the Institute of Remote Sensing (IRS) in Chennai, showing the plot almost outside the 100m zone of the Mahim coast.

The builder's proposal "convinced" the authority , which approved it in a meeting in May end. "The IRS report shows a part of the plot in CRZ and a part outside it. The actual demarcation has been done by IRS.
The coastal authority accepted the IRS report and decided the CRZ status accordingly ," said a state environmental department official.

Officials said this is the first big instance of development enabled by the redefinition of Mahim as a "bay". In the wake of Mahim coast's reclassification as a bay—where environmental protections are weaker—government officials expect a rush of applications from builders across the city whose plots fall under coast regulation zone (CRZ).

Hubtown had purchased the defunct Hindoostan Mills in Prabhadevi for Rs 350 crore in 2007, but was unable to utilize the full development potential because of CRZ restrictions. Last year, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan cancelled an abnormally high floor space index (FSI) of 7.6 sanctioned by his predecessor for a hotel project on the property. The developer was eventually left

with a much-reduced FSI of 1.33 because of the CRZ restrictions.

Several of these impediments have got lifted because of the MCZMA's decision on Mahim coast. The plot was earlier reserved solely for industrial use and its status could not be changed to build residential buildings as it fell under CRZ. But now that it has been taken out of CRZ, its reservation can be changed for residential purposes.

Also, with the plot virtually removed from CRZ, the builder can now procure additional construction rights under the government's public parking policy. The state provides extra FSI to any builder who builds a public parking facility on a part of his land free of cost for the civ

ic administration.

Vimal Shah of Hubtown said the builder's immediate plan was to utilize the base FSI of 1.33 to build a residential complex instead of a hotel.

"It is shocking that environmental agencies are allowing builders to reduce the extent of the CRZ belt from 500 metres to 100 metres," said Debi Goenka, executive trustee of the Mumbai-based Conservation Action Trust.

"Unlike creeks and estuaries, the entire frontage of the bay is impacted by wave and tidal action twice a day.

Therefore the logic that was used to reduce the width of the CRZ along creeks from 500 metres to 100 metres obviously cannot be applied to bays," said Goenka.

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