in association with

92/80( DISCOVER RISING DESTINATI NS DRANGE OF PROPERTIES DSLEW OF INITIATIVES DADVANCED WASTE MANAGEMENT DRICH SOCIO-CULTURAL HERITAGE

INDEX

EDITOR BOB ROY 4 THE SUN NEVER SETS IN THE WEST 6 SEAL THE DEAL EDITORIAL COORDINATORS 8 CHANGE IS THE ONLY CONSTANT IRENE SAHA AAHELI GHOSE 12 EDITOR’S NOTE

DESIGN HEAD 14 A TERRAIN TERRIFIC PRABIR DAS 16 RISING LIKE A PHOENIX DESIGN 22 PARTNERS IN FUTURISTIC GROWTH INDRAJIT SEN ARNAB GUHA 24 JUMPING ON THE BANDWAGON

CONCEPT 26 STRIKING A NOTE OF OPTIMISM AJAY MN 28 A FANTASTIC VALUE PROPOSITION MARKETING 30 UNLOCKING TRUE POTENTIAL COORDINATOR SAIKAT GANGULY 32 KEY TO PEACEFUL POLICING

PUBLISHED BY 34 WAVE OF DEVELOPMENT ARNAB CHATTERJEE ON BEHALF OF BENNETT 36 TOWERING WONDER COLEMAN & COMPANY LIMITED 105/7A, 38 REALISING A GARBAGE-FREE LIFE S N BANERJEE ROAD 40 TECH’S THE WAY - 700014 42 IT PAYS TO BE PROFESSIONAL Copyright © 44 LEGALLY BOUND Bennett,Coleman & Co. Ltd., 2020 46 CONNECTED INSIDE SMARTLY Disclaimer: Due care and diligence has been taken 52 THE SACRED STREAM while compiling this 54 CONNECTING WITH CARE magazine. The Publisher does not hold any 56 A NEW DAWN responsibility for any mistakes that may have 60 PRICE TRENDS crept in inadvertently. 64 AN EXPLOSION OF VARIETY The Publisher shall be free from any liability for 66 GALLERY OF INITIATIVES damages and losses of any nature arising from or 68 TRAVEL TREAT related to the content of 70 SHANKAR’S THOUGHTS ON the magazine. All rights reserved 76 TAKING THE SERVICE WAY TO SUCCESS worldwide. No part of this 80 TRANSFORMING STORAGE SOLUTIONS publication may be reproduced, stored in a 82 SURGE IN DEMAND retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form 84 BOND WITH THE BEST or by any means. The 86 MANAGING COMMITTEE opinions and views contained in this 88 THE SUB-COMMITTEE publication are not necessarily those of the 90 WINNING TOGETHER Publisher. 92 PROJECTS LISTING CREDAI HOWRAH-HOOGHLY 10 153, Road, Howrah - 711103 Website: http://credaihowrahhooghly.com Email: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] RISE AND SHINE THE SUN NEVER SETS IN THE WEST ousing in the adjoining districts of Howrah RAY OF HOPE and Hooghly has been the subject of The East West Metro Line is expected to be Hnoteworthy reforms based on changes in commissioned in 2021. The Howrah Metro the economic growth of West . Large Station is expected to have a daily estimated format residential, commercial and logistics devel- ridership of over 6 lakh commuters. The Howrah opments, expansion of growth corridors, infra- Maidan along with the Esplanade stations will be structural changes and availability of land parcels the two deepest stations in the country. Probably have lured developers here. The focus on afford- the busiest too! Hence, the imposing question is able housing has also been successful in making — Does Howrah have the infrastructure to handle the two districts focal points in such expansion. so many commuters especially on the Haat days? Haat traders realised this early, and moved to OVER THE PAST LOOKING BACK new favourable business zones like Kona, DECADE, MANY When the Britishers came to , they made and adjoining areas along NH-16. These Calcutta, their elite British bastion, a capital of haats have started to operate on Wednesdays and RENOWNED sorts. The western banks and the other side of the Thursdays as a supporting trade infrastructure to DEVELOPERS HAVE were gifted away to the lesser Mangla Haat but in the near future they may well IDENTIFIED LARGE European powers like the French and the Dutch, become the primary ones. LAND PARCELS and also became the industrial hub where the factories and those who worked in them stayed. LOGISTICS: THE NEW KID ON THE BLOCK OVERLOOKING THE Thus historically, a large number of prominent With enhanced connectivity along with GANGES AND THUS, urban centres have emerged along the west bank proliferation of E-commerce, logistics has lately STARTED A NEW of the river Hooghly in a narrow elongated strip become the biggest buzz word. As major players from in the north to in the started scouting for space to set large format MODERN PHASE OF th th south during 17 to 19 century. warehouses, the NH alignment came out a clear THE DEVELOPMENT is one of these older urban centres, which winner. This shift was primarily a result of the ALONG THE WEST retains its legacy. While Bengal was ruled by the availability of superior connectivity — Kona BANK OF HOOGHLY British East India Company, Chandannagar was Expressway-National Highways ( Road and administered by the French even for a period Bombay Road) alignment and the Santragachi RIVER, STATES after Independence. Station. TAMAL GHOSAL, The Santragachi terminus is set to become Be- PRESIDENT, CREDAI CORE ALWAYS DELIVERED MORE ngal’s biggest multi-model hub with modernised HOWRAH-HOOGHLY Howrah Station has remained central to Howrah Santragachi Station, the newly-commissioned and its economy. Transportation linkages led to terminus as well the proposed Metro terminus. the development of the biggest economic activity This with the ` 2,000 crore Kona elevated corridor of the region — haats which happened every is a future ready fantastic plan for the region. Tuesday and later extended to Monday. Popularly These developments along with the traditional known as Mangla Haat, it expanded to Metiabruz, base of Howrah and as the indus- playing a stellar role in the development of trade, trial hub ensures that the region remains leader in commerce and employment. contributing the highest GSDP in the state.

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SEAL THE DEAL

he real estate scenario across the country was hit by the lockdown. It was no different in case of Howrah. There was only 3-5% sales during that period. Bookings T for those were based on the interactions that happened in the first two months of the year. With the unlocking in July, things started looking brighter. Though enquiries are few, Navratri on, it has picked up pace. It will get better from here on. Compared to Kolkata, there is a pricing difference of about ` 2,000 per sq ft. In the past two years, developers have got 25 lakh sq ft area from the corporation. This zone has potential which is why reputed builders are coming here to invest. Around 2.5 crore flats are likely to come up in the near future.

THERE IS A SURGE WAREHOUSING SECTOR IN REAL ESTATE There is demand for warehousing along the National Highways. Suburbs are where BUSINESS; industries develop and once that happens, people look for places in the surrounding areas HOME BUYERS to settle down. This will also boost housing as people employed there will want to stay somewhere close to their workplace. Prime locations like Dalhousie, Race Course, ARE COMING BACK Barabazar are in a 4-5 km vicinity of Howrah Maidan. A sizeable non-Bengali community, AND BOOKING who has businesses in Barabazar, stays in Howrah as it is at an easy distance from their TOO HAS shops. In any housing project in Howrah, 30% booking is done by them. IMPROVED, STATES RR CHAUDHARY, HOUSING IN HOWRAH-HOOGHLY CHAIRMAN, CREDAI The new structures in Howrah are multi-storeyed buildings. In the past four to five years, Howrah Municipal Corporation has adopted a new rule and there is no bar to raise high HOWRAH-HOOGHLY rise buildings. Metro Railway arriving in Howrah Maidan area will be a game changer and connect this part to every corner of Kolkata. The Metro Corridor, which is being developed between Salt Lake Sector-V to Howrah Maidan, for a total route length of 16.6 km will make life easy for all those who need to access that part of the city. Between Kolkata’s business district with the industrial city of Howrah in the west and Salt Lake City in the east, the project aims to create efficient transit connectivity through an accessible, safe and comfortable public transport mode. In Hooghly, real estate action is based on GT Road from Bally to . Loads of housing complexes are coming up on GT Road. Builders are focusing on this area as people up to Burdwan are ready to shift to good housing complexes at , Chandannagar and Serampore. For any project to do well, the vicinity must have social infrastructure like markets, banks, hospitals, schools, etc. The state government should also support projects by making infrastructure available. Booking are bound to pick up when infrastructure devel- ops as they are interrelated.

TALK OF THE TOWN Howrah Hooghly as well as Kolkata can look forward to a marvel that is coming up at Belilious Park. It is an observatory, the highest tower in South East Asia with a 400 feet high revolving restaurant. It will be thrown open in seven to eight months. An amusement park is also being developed there.

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CHANGE IS THE ONLY CONSTANT

he only constant in real estate industry is change. From inflation, demonetisation, GST, rigid RERA acts to Corona, our industry has experienced Tconstant disruptions on every front. With every passing crisis it has made our will to succeed stronger and we have come to accept the changes and challenges more humbly. It’s my belief that Howrah and Hooghly are long due for a bull-run and has a great potential for future growth with the right ingredients of heritage infrastructure, location, catchment, connectivity and affordability.

NEXT COVETED DESTINATION The paradigm shift of ‘Seat of Power’ from the ‘Writers’ to ‘Nabanna’ is testimony to THE HOWRAH– the fact that the western frontiers of the river Hooghly is poised to be the next dream HOOGHLY BELT IS destination for major real estate projects and more. The strategic location of the POISED TO EMERGE Howrah-Hooghly region with excellent road and rail connectivity gives it an added new age-new edge advantage over Kolkata and the North & South 24 Parganas. AS AN ATTRACTIVE The region historically had major industrial activity and developments due to the AND AFFORDABLE road connectivity through the NH-2 & NH-6 to the rest of the country and rail DESTINATION FOR connectivity through the Howrah station, , and Shalimar stations. Rich in natural resources with abundance of water, cheap labour and power — the PROPERTY region has always had great potential for growth and development. BUYERS ON THE STRENGTH OF ITS GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES LOCATIONAL, The government has proactively identified the grey areas and has already started modernising the municipal corporation and the municipalities which are working LOGISTICAL round-the-clock to provide the best of civic services including, roads, water, AND SOCIAL electricity, solid waste management, tree plantations and parks maintenance, health INFRASTRUCTURAL and hygiene etc. ADVANTAGES, HOUSING OPTIONS SHARES SATYEN Major mass housing projects of national players like Shapoorji & Palonji, Shriram SANGHVI, Housing, Tata Housing, Merlin Group, Eden Group and Alcove Realty have come up in SECRETARY, CREDAI the region providing first-of-its-kind highly affordable, sustainable, modern lifestyle HOWRAH-HOOGHLY housing with state-of-the-art common facilities and amenities. CALL OF CONNECTIVITY The stretch along Kona Expressway such as Jagdishpur, and is likely to witness rapid development due to excellent connectivity with Delhi and highways. Warehousing, SEZ and logistics are emerging asset classes in the west bank of Hooghly owing to its excellent connectivity via the national highway network. Add to this, the almost ready East-West Metro rail network is likely to scale up the demand for residential development in this region.

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EDITOR’S NOTE

Howrah and Hooghly belt is finally emerging from the shadows of history and colonial legacies, and treading onto the path leading to realisation of its true potential. New initiatives — both public and private — are enabling the city to embrace larger goals commensurate with Howrah’s status as the twin city of Kolkata, Hooghly being the resource rich, immediate hinterland of the twin cities. With the new focus on developing Howrah as a mega city with better infrastructure facilities, more residents from different parts of the state have been attracted to move to Howrah. Stretching across the sylvan plains west of river Hooghly, these areas enjoy excellent connectivity, less commuting time, quality housing, social and health infrastructure including real estate ventures by renowned brands. No wonder these areas are turning out to be the latest hotspot for large-scale, high quality real estate development. Howrah’s connectivity to Kolkata through ferry services and the four river bridges — , , and the newest bridge called , together with the upcoming East-West Metro Line is set to augment the existing connectivity and transform the way people commute. Bricks and Bytes from CREDAI Howrah and Hooghly in association with The Times of India provides expert views and in-depth analysis of the emerging positivity in the socio-economical and historical backdrop of this famed region. This ready reckoner is sure to serve as a one-stop source for making an informed purchase or sales decision involving any kind of real estate acquisition.

Bob Roy Editor Times Response The Times of India Group Kolkata llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll WORKING HAND IN HAND THE AIM OF THE CONVENOR AND JOINT CONVENOR IS TO ENHANCE THE IMAGE OF CREDAI HOWRAH-HOOGHLY THROUGH A SLEW OF INITIATIVES

CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly Real estate is a complex industry Chapter has been in and each real estate product, be existence for over four it a home, shop warehouse or an years now. In this period, it office space, is produced has grown from a group of through a series of processes select developers to a large that form a long supply chain. umbrella organisation that This chain involves stakeholders spans across a very large from varying backgrounds — the domain. From generating awareness on poor construction worker, the buyer, the developer, specific issues among our members to the contractor, the broker, the banker, the develop- initiating dialogues between developers and ment authority, the fire inspector, the sewage engi- other stakeholders, we have indeed come a neer, the corporation authorities and many more. long way. The purpose of CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly is to The organisation has contributed in create a common platform for all. A more holistic volumes and helped the chapter to grow and approach to real estate and its countless complex- achieve national recognition. Local initiatives ities will be a better bet to rid the industry of any by CREDAI members have worked to improve ailments. Everyone must perform to rectify the local building regulations and their implemen- errors in the system and ensure on-time delivery of tation, improving the prevailing processes. quality real estate at appropriate costs. ³Alok Agarwal ³Ritesh Jaiswal convenor, Magazine & Exhibitions, CHH joint convenor, Magazine & Exhibitions, CHH

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FOREWORD

A TERRAIN TERRIFIC

list is endless. s a child, my parents often used to take me out This is CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly chapter’s first on winter vacations. While going to Howrah ever real estate digest. Our mission is to provide AStation to board the train, we had to actionable, code-level guidance to develop- cross the Ganges. During one such trip, when ers with projects in this terrain and our transit vehicle chugged along the beyond. We’re here to create a Howrah Bridge, my mother once platform to share their hard-won handed over an orange and asked The sweet delicacies of insights with the greater Mrityunjoy (Chandannagar) and me to offer it to the holy river. I community. Do you have an Felu Modak (), the zardozi promptly made a safe travel and filigree artisans of Uluberia, innovative approach or an wish and gently tossed the fruit the gifted electricians of elegant solution to a into the river. This incident Chandannagar who light up the common challenge? Have remained with me forever. So did Jagadhatri Puja pandals,the you found a way to exotic locations of my bonding with the flowing fervour , Janai and leverage a new feature or tool — Ganga, the river of our dreams! Khanyan…the list is endless that hasn’t been widely explored in Four decades later, when I sat writing this the real estate market? Then this is note — the evening images of the twin cities the right forum. and the western side of the Ganges kept flashing in Creating a good forum or a community and my mind. Howrah and Hooghly as a terrain, appeal to being a part of it is like rocket fuel for your me in ways more than one. The sweet delicacies of credibility. Owning a niche is important. Through Mrityunjoy (Chandannagar) and Felu Modak (Rishra), this magazine, we seek to improve understanding of the zardozi and filigree artisans of Uluberia, the gifted this vital sector, and also to identify and share best electricians of Chandannagar who light up the practices. Bricks & Bytes aspires to transform that Jagadhatri Puja pandals, the exotic locations of utopian thought to realty. Jagatballavpur, Janai and Khanyan where Bengali ³Subhash Chakraborty Editorial coordinator, CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly matinee idol Uttam Kumar shot most of his films…the

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COVER STORY

HAVING FOR LONG BEEN IN THE SHADOW OF KOLKATA, RISING HOWRAH-HOOGHLY BELT IS FINALLY GROWING INTO ITS OWN IDENTITY AND IS POISED TO BECOME A TRUE ALTERNATE TO LIKE A THE METROPOLIS PHOENIX [email protected]

ne of the oldest industrial support clusters, Howrah–Hooghly belt lies Oadjacent to Kolkata. Located on the west bank of the Hooghly river and close to national highways, this belt is an active industrial hub of East India. Till 1960s, Howrah as an industrial hub earned the sobriquet ‘Sheffield of the East’. “Since time immemorial, this belt has prospered due to important industries like jute, engineering goods, automobile, to state a few,” states Harsh Vardhan Patodia, president elect CREDAI National and CMD, Unimark Group. The upcoming real estate projects are chang- ing the industrial and residential landscape in the Howrah-Hooghly belt. “Less travelling time from the city and excellent connectivity is attracting large branded players and this indicates that the area seems to be tantalisingly poised for a lot of

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THINKSTOCK

positive economic growth in near future,” regions are poised to grow in the future because of the opines Swapan Dutta, branch director affordable price tags. “For instance, the average – Kolkata, Knight Frank India. The cosmopolitan wave property prices at Howrah region peripheries are is fast catching up and complex anywhere between ` 2,500 and ` 4,000 per SUPERIOR CONNECTIVITY living is being rapidly accepted. sqft and mostly priced within sub ` 65 lakh It is an aspirational outlook According to RR Chaudhary, wherein a mixed bag of budget. The region has maximum demand for chairman, CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly, amenities and spatial affordable properties,” explains Soumendu “Proximity to Kolkata and this belt being living is becoming the Chatterjee, city lead - Kolkata, ANAROCK Property well connected to the city clearly works in order of the day Consultants. Agrees Patodia. “The price difference favour of it.” Howrah’s connectivity to Kolkata is between Howrah-Hooghly and Kolkata in a similar loca- through numerous ferry services and the four river tion with the same kind of infrastructure would prove bridges — Howrah Bridge, Vidyasagar Setu, Howrah-Hooghly to be almost 20% cheaper,” he confides. Vivekananda Setu and the newest bridge, called Nivedita Most of the affordable projects come loaded with lifestyle Setu. “Together with this, the upcoming East-West Metro Line amenities. “Buyers are mostly local and they are price sensitive. is set to augment the existing connectivity and transform the way There is a sizable buyer segment from Kolkata who aspired to live people commute. Connecting Howrah all the way up to Salt Lake a quality life but had limited budget. There are also people who are City via Esplanade and Sealdah, the new Metro line will give buying properties here as second homes or weekend hideouts,” residents of Howrah unparalleled access to Kolkata,” avers Rishi shares Atanu Upadhyay, owner and founder, Realty Quest. Nayar, MD – Kolkata, Cushman & Wakefield India. The region also enjoys great road connectivity. “In fact, this belt historically had INFRASTRUCTURE INITIATIVES major industrial activity and developments due to the road Morning shows the day and a new history was created as the connectivity through the NH-2 and NH-6 to the rest of the country chief minister Mamata Banerjee shifted the seat of and rail connectivity through the Howrah Station, Sankrail Station, power from Writers’ Buildings to Nabanna at Mandirtala in Dankuni Station and Shalimar Station,” says Satyen Sanghvi, Howrah. “The paradigm shift of the seat of power is testimony to secretary, CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly. the fact that the western frontiers of the river Hooghly is poised to be the next dream destination for major,” reminds Sanghvi. DRIVING DEMAND Post this shift, the belt has seen a lot of infrastructure Howrah and Hooghly are completely different markets in compar- initiatives. “The western bank of Hooghly is witnessing major ison to Kolkata. The USP of this belt is clearly its affordability. The infrastructure upgradation with the widening of Kona Expressway,

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the upcoming East West Metro corridor, the proposed Ring Road in and economic activity. Both are growing consistently in this belt,” Howrah, and the ongoing modernisation of Santragachi and adds Pansari. Logistics too is driving demand for property. Shalimar station to decongest Howrah station,” says Nayar. WAREHOUSING BOON POLICY INITIATIVES West Kolkata is presently witnessing the emergence of various Key recent policy initiatives such as the WBHIRA, PMAY, etc to new commercial developments driven by the logistics/ warehous- empower the customer has increased the demand for good ing clusters in the area. Warehousing is an emerging asset class in residential properties in the influence zone with the real estate the region owing to its excellent connectivity via National Highway sector becoming more transparent and customer friendly. There network. “While the market has been active, and prices have been has been consistent demand for housing here among the mostly stable, it is anticipated that Howrah has the potential for population that stays here and holds government and private jobs. rapid growth in the future. The emerging corridors along the Delhi “Howrah as well as important places in Hooghly like Serampore, and Mumbai roads are expected to witness heightened activities in the areas of warehousing and logistics, which are expected to TRENDS TO WATCH OUT FOR grow further in the region. It is O Howrah-Hooghly belt is a price sensitive region anticipated that this region will be home to major players in the O It is majorly dominated by affordable projects with warehousing and logistics, which few mid segment projects being launched is expected to transform the O Around 52% of the investment grade projects has a region,” predicts Nayar. ticket size ranging from ` 10 to ` 39 lakh O Some 37% in the ticket size is of ` 40-` 69 lakh COMMERCIAL SCENE in regions like Uttarpara, , Santragachi While this belt is no Sector V or and Serampore Dalhousie, commercial properties O Absorption trend in projects depicts demand in the are in huge demand. “Howrah is 2 and 3 BHK configuration more of an industrial belt. In such a scenario, logistics and O The sales velocity lies in the range of five to six warehousing space concept projects per month works better and fits into the O The average unit size in the investment grade classification. However having category ranges between 920 sqft to 1320 sqft in said, that there is a huge untapped the 2 and 3 BHK category in the region potential of the retail segment as big brands are yet to penetrate this market,” avers Sushil Mohta, Chandannagar, Uttarpara are well connected to Kolkata by trains president, CREDAI West Bengal chapter and chairman, Merlin and national highways. This has made its acceptability pretty high Group of Companies. Howrah has developed as a commercial hub and led to a healthy demand of inventory of houses here. People as most of the warehouses are located in Howrah NH-2/ NH-6 belt. are happy to stay here,” points out Siddharth Pansari, director, “It is the entry point to Kolkata and caters to huge demands for Primarc Projects. With better policy environment in the state commercial and industrial spaces for most of the MNCs and other (WBHIRA implementation), lowering of home loans, increasing industries. Proximity to Kolkata is a huge advantage. Being a disposable income with the population, there has been a gradual traditional commercial hub and presence of huge business change in consumer sentiment in the market, with people community living in Howrah, there is a huge demand for investing in buying properties than renting. commercials properties in and around that belt,” avers Upadhyay.

LOGISTICS HUB FUTURE WISE Howrah and Hooghly are one of the most sought after destinations With the changing lifestyle and aspirations of the people residing for logistics owing to its proximity to NH-2 and NH-6 that in the region, developments in the line of gated communities with connects the region to Delhi and Mumbai respectively. “With modern facilities are in demand. With the real estate market in the enhanced connectivity along with proliferation of E-commerce, main city area reaching a saturation point, fresh developments are logistics has lately become the biggest buzz word,” points Tamal taking place along the city’s periphery. “The East West Metro Line Ghosal, president, CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly. It is already estab- is expected to be commissioned in 2021. The Howrah Maidan lished as an industrial belt for Kolkata and a considerable count of Metro Station is expected to have a daily estimated ridership of people are engaged in various industrial parks and upcoming logis- over 6 lakh commuters,” concludes Ghosal. All this will further give tic hub in the region. “Demand is a function of social infrastructure a fillip to these peripheral areas.

20 Bricks & Bytes HIRA/P/HOO/2018/000046 HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000087 HIRA/P/KOL/2018/000064

hira.wb.gov.in CREDAI HOWRAH-HOOGHLY

PARTNERS IN FUTURISTIC

GROWTH GETTYIMAGES

HOWRAH AND he apex body of private real estate developers, Energy Efficiency (BEE), Niti Aayog and others. HOOGHLY BELT Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ The government values suggestions shared by TAssociations of India (CREDAI), was established CREDAI — both at the national as well as the IS TURNING in 1999 to give a new direction to the Indian real state level. OUT TO BE estate industry along with promoting the cause of CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly is a city chapter under THE LATEST housing and habitat. In the years that followed, its the aegis of the state chapter CREDAI West Bengal, HOTSPOT FOR membership grew manifold and today it is spread which in turn is under the umbrella of CREDAI LARGE-SCALE across 21 state and 220 city chapters. National. While CREDAI National promotes the REAL ESTATE The aim of CREDAI is to make the real estate industry on a national level, CREDAI West Bengal industry more organised and progressive under a promotes the state, and CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly DEVELOPMENT single umbrella by working closely with all the focuses on the Howrah-Hooghly belt. UNDER THE stakeholders involved — government CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly is the bridge of AEGIS OF representatives, policy makers, investors, finance communication between developers and consumers CREDAI companies, consumers, and real estate professionals. in this part of the state and works at credible rela- HOWRAH- Its sincere efforts have been recognised by the tionship-building between industry and government and today it is represented in government in this belt. It also holds sessions to HOOGHLY several committees working on policy formulations enable knowledge sharing between its member and various committees of the government developers and ensures there is transparent including Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, communication between industry and customer. Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Buying a home is not the same as buying anything. Change, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Civil It is an emotional process for it entails investing in a Aviation, Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), Bureau of dream of a lifetime!

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GROWING DEMAND

JUMPING ON THE BANDWAGON

he unprecedented Coronavirus crisis has towards affordable housing. Tier 2-Tier 3 cities are impacted the economy worldwide as most of the next emerging realty destinations. There has Tthe sectors are witness to disruption in their been a shift in preference of home ownership over businesses. Real estate sector, which remains one of renting. This is validated by increased number of the strongest pillars of the Indian economy, is also inquiries coming in for affordable properties. Also, grappling with its impact. The sector has started many developers have engaged buyers by providing showing signs of recovery especially in the context of 360 degree virtual tour, digital consultations and easy the upcoming festive season. The pandemic has registration. Most significantly, with work from home WITH made people realise the importance of investing in being the new normal, people have started investing TIER 2-TIER 3 homes, and thus, the importance of real estate in in larger living spaces. one’s life as the safest investment option. Even non-residential Indians, looking from the CITIES EMERGING The revival of the sector holds utmost importance investment perspective, are driven towards Tier 2 AS REALTY as it contributes to 7% of the country’s GDP, and market as it provides affordable, greener and DESTINATIONS, remains the second largest employer. Recently, some spacious accommodation. Therefore, the new THE HOWRAH of the timely measures announced by the state and residential segment coming up in towns such as the central government have given a boost to the Howrah is likely to garner much interest from buyers AND HOOGHLY housing segment. Reduction in stamp duty prices by as developers are ensuring advanced lifestyle BELT IS LIKELY Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh government is requirements in these projects. We are hopeful that TO GARNER KEEN one such immediate measure to boost residential in the coming days, the Indian real estate sector will sales. Extension on moratorium for borrowers will witness stimulation in demand. Reverse migration INTEREST FROM help ease the financial burden. Banks are offering will also attract investors to smaller cities for both BUYERS, OPINES home loans at an all-time low which has led to an residential and commercial spaces. JAXAY SHAH upsurge in people investing in homes. In the end, I would like to thank the members of Currently, it’s a buyers’ market. With the current CREDAI Howrah Chapter for their continuous efforts pandemic, some significant trends have emerged in in supporting families of construction workers in the real estate market. There is a growing demand in these testing times and would request them to residential segment in Tier 2 and 3 cities. The march towards resilience with the spirit to win! reduced land cost coupled with the idea of comfort- able living has once again directed the attention ³ The author is chairman, CREDAI National

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SHIFT IN TREND

STRIKINGSTRIKING AA NOTENOTE OFOF

OPTIMISM GETTYIMAGES

cross the globe, billions of people are fighting against a prodigious THE REALTY SECTOR IS IN RECOVERY MODE, Aglobal health crisis. The Covid-19 AND PROJECTS BASED IN TIER 2 CITIES OF pandemic has not only impacted the lives WEST BENGAL ARE EXPECTED TO CATCH THE but also livelihoods of many across the globe. During these testing times, survival BUYERS’ ATTENTION, OPINES SATISH MAGAR for the realty sector has not been easy. CREDAI has withstood the challenging began the million tree plantation initiative We are optimistic that in times to come, times with utmost vigour as we took care called Kalpavriksha to continue our the sector will start recovering. Especially, of the construction workers and moved momentum of sustainable development the projects based in Tier 2 cities of West forward with the never-give-up spirit. and for a greener and healthier India. Bengal are expected to catch the buyers To prepare against the implication that With phased unlock guidelines by the attention. The sustainable infrastructure this pandemic has caused, developers Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. push along with developer’s vision will set have prepared themselves for the time Government of India, the sector has this trend further. ahead. Various initiatives by CREDAI chap- started showing signs of recovery. The We have faced many roadblocks in the ters have been implemented to ensure situation seems to be more optimistic past, however, the spirit of each member that this sector is at par with the changing particularly in Tier 1 and Tier 2 markets. has ensured that we stand strong social-environment scenario. With the cur- There has been a growing demand for and tall. I urge you all to continue rent pandemic, we have pledged to residential properties in these markets. serving this sector with this determination strengthen our resolution for a sustainable The shift in the trend is mainly due to a and positivity. ³The author is president, environment. During the lockdown, we change in buyer’s perspective. CREDAI National

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HOUSING DREAMS A FANTASTIC VALUE PROPOSITION

owrah, as well as Hooghly, developed estate activity in this belt. Prices per sqft that are because of their proximity to the river bank. lower than in Kolkata will get corrected over a period HThey are both old and well established of time. The price difference between Howrah-Hooghly developments. Earlier, when maritime trade was and Kolkata in a similar location with the same kind of practised the world over, any area near the river bank infrastructure would prove Howrah-Hooghly to be was very important. Howrah and Hooghly have always almost 20% cheaper. Howrah-Hooghly is well been industrial belts in Bengal. What make them stand connected with flyovers, bridges, railway and ferry to GIVEN THE out from time immemorial are the different industries different parts of Kolkata. Whatever infrastructure was — jute, engineering goods, automobile, to state a few. not there is coming up now — thanks to the govern- PACE OF They have all prospered and how! ment of West Bengal spending a fair amount of money. INFRASTRUCTURE These areas also happen to be densely populated The present chief minister shifting her government’s DEVELOPMENT, with a diverse kind of people. Apart from that, these office from Writers’ Buildings in the CBD to Nabanna, THE PRICE areas have fairly good amount of social infrastructure the blue and white high-rise in the industrial township DIFFERENCE catering to education, health, welfare, social services, of Howrah, sealed the fate of this belt for the better. recreation, safety and emergency services, religious, That watershed moment heralded the rise of Howrah BETWEEN arts and cultural facilities, civic institutions and like never before. HOWRAH- community meeting places which have been Hooghly, which is also an industrial belt, is not as HOOGHLY AND developed over the years. But these places were developed as Howrah but it has a huge potential for KOLKATA WILL neglected from the perspective of housing develop- development. Compared to Howrah and Kolkata, land GET CORRECTED ment though they are well connected to Kolkata, and availability is better there. Being underserved, there is OVER A PERIOD OF all modes of public transport are available. a requirement there for gated communities since it These two areas are a little underrated in terms of provides unique safety and security. Uttarpara and TIME, POINTS possibility of development. However, that is changing Chandannagar are good localities to stay in. HARSH VARDHAN as land prices here are much lower than that in There is a huge potential in terms of ongoing PATODIA Kolkata and other parts of South and North 24 infrastructure development and quality of projects. Parganas. As such to build a house or acquire a home Social infrastructure will push these areas further. A in both these locations is a fantastic value proposition. special mention must be made of Howrah Municipal A host of modern complexes too have started coming Corporation and other municipalities which are putting up in these two areas. There are a lot of projects on in a lot of effort in terms of infrastructure development the river bank. River bank projects are good traction to make lives of people staying there easier and more because of the view. Nothing can ever change that. comfortable. The aim is to give the people there a Having said that, there are also projects that are not better quality of life and broaden their horizons by coming here as the land is mostly industrial land and providing them multiple opportunities for social, cannot be converted to residential land. That is a physical and economic growth. limitation. Metro connectivity will further boost real ³The author is president elect, CREDAI National

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A GOLD MINE

UNLOCKING TRUE POTENTIAL

owrah is becoming an alternative to the mega by virtue of ancestral inheritance. city Kolkata. This year has shown us how Metro is going to be operational in a few months. The Hductile the real estate market can belt of Santragachi and Shalimar has been expand- behave. From a total halt in construction ing manifolds. The road connectivity is improv- from the last week of March to an ing immensely due to expansion work going absolute bounce back after lock- on. Since the time Howrah Municipal down relaxation, it has been an GROWTH OF THIS Corporation has intervened, infra- BELT IS A LOT ABOUT interesting contrast. Real structure has been improving. PERCEPTION BUILDING THAT HOWRAH IS GOING estate across Kolkata along WOULD UNLOCK ITS TRUE As it is more of an industrial TO BE THE NEXT with its twin the Howrah- POTENTIAL. WE NEED TO KEEP belt, more than retail or com- IMPORTANT Hooghly belt saw a surge which TALKING AND WORKING OUR mercial space, logistic and ware- was never expected to be so close WAY TOWARDS UNLEASHING housing space concept works better LOCALE AFTER THE POSSIBILITIES to pre-Covid times. HERE and fits into the classification in KOLKATA, Another interesting factor has been the Howrah. However, there is a huge untapped JUST THE WAY site visit to closure ratio. The quality of site vis- potential of the retail segment as big brands REGION its has improved by leaps and bounds. The TAT to are yet to penetrate this market. This makes the HAS GROWN closures is hovering at around 50-55 days. This pan- area a gold mine of opportunity which is untapped. demic has created a paradigm shift in thought process Scope of development in this belt is huge and should BEYOND — it has engineered the mind to think that a new definitely be tapped as we are stabilising from the RECOGNITION, house is as much a need as having life insurance cov- whirlwind effect of the past two quarters. VOUCHES erage. This belt particularly has huge potential as most There is immense opportunity of growth in the next SUSHIL MOHTA of the mass are still in joint family format with proba- two to three years. Given the pace at which we are bly one room allocated to a family of four. moving, Howrah’s development would be beyond This region has remained untapped. Residents of recognition. There is a growing demand for residential this area would remain rigid on buying spaces in and complexes in this area as the area is coming up the around this belt. Options available to this segment of curve and staying in a complex is highly aspirational. buyers are comparatively less. Land bank availability is Growth of this belt is a lot about perception also a challenge for construction. With the upcoming building that would unlock the true potential of this East-West Metro, property price appreciation is place. We need to keep talking and working our way expected. This year’s festive season, along with next towards unleashing the true potential. It is only year, would be crucial for customer gain. with the growth of the periphery that you truly give Driving demand amidst the pandemic is the thought back to society, generate employment and contribute of having more space specifically for a class of people to the GDP. who were happy with the limited space they owned ³ The author is president, CREDAI West Bengal chapter

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SAFETY & SECURITY

KEYKEY TOTO PEACEFULPEACEFUL POLICING

owrah Police Commissionerate is the gateway STANDING BY to Kolkata from different parts of the country. HIt also serves as the connector to other dis- THE AGED OR tricts like Howrah Rural, Purba and Paschim Midn- PROVIDING apore, BKP Commissionerate, BDN Commissionerate, with the Shroddha project. There is also an AC library- North and South 24 Parganas, etc. Ever since the state cum-office. Every year, HCP organises TRAFFIC UPDATES secretariat Nabanna was shifted to Mandirtala, this Darshan in an AC bus in and around Kolkata. Shroddha ALONGSIDE belt’s importance has increased manifold. members are also invited to take part in social func- SAFEGUARDING tions like blood donation camps, green projects. STANDING BY SENIOR CITIZENS CITIZENS AND Shroddha is a unique initiative of Howrah City Police CCTV COVERAGE MAINTAINING LAW (HCP) for the elderly people living alone in its jurisdic- To monitor traffic situation as well as to detect crimes, tion. HCP has a 24x 7 helpline (9051200100) for them. HCP has installed more than thousand CC cameras AND ORDER ARE An alarm bell has been installed in every Shroddha with two different control rooms. All PSs under HCP ALL A PART OF THE member’s residence to help them in any crisis. HCP too have installed CC cameras additionally in their PS DAY’S WORK has roped in two private hospitals — one each in jurisdiction along with PS-level CCTV control rooms. south and north Howrah — to cater to the treatment FOR HOWRAH need of members. Both indoor and outdoor services CYBER SECURITY CITY POLICE, are given at reduced rates. The membership card is The pandemic has seen a rise in cybercrimes. Lack of treated as their medical card. HCP has six ambulances awareness and netiquette make most users easy tar- INFORMS KUNAL (Kiran) to transport Shroddha members. gets for cybercriminals. Phishing traps naive people. AGGARWAL, IPS, The nodal officer and his team in every police sta- The Cyber Crime PS of HPC continuously fights against tion (PS) under the direct supervision of respective OC these frauds while Social Media Monitoring Cell is COMMISSIONER and zonal AC and DC, visit the members. This visit is doing its bit in Misinformation Management. OF POLICE, called the Shroddha Para Meeting. The OC, communi- HOWRAH CITY ty and his staff call up all the members every day to SOCIAL MEDIA MONITORING CELL ascertain their problem and solve them accordingly. A team of HCP monitors social sites like Facebook, In midst of the pandemic, HCP reached out to the Twitter, etc on a daily basis to rule out anti-govern- senior citizens and helped them with medicines, gro- ment posts or anything derogatory which can create cery items provided vehicle, gas cylinder supplies, law and order situation. Posts related to major festi- water, etc. At present, 153 members are registered vals are also scanned.

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MOVING AHEAD

WAVEWAVE OFOF GETTYIMAGES DEVELOPMENT

ver the last couple of decades there has been a COVID-19 EFFECT REALISING THE tremendous growth and development in At present, Howrah has 1,233 hospital beds spread over IMPORTANCE OHowrah. Historically, this district is known for its eight Covid hospitals including 218 ICU beds in four OF HOWRAH industrial growth, MSME sector as well as unorganised Covid hospitals. Other than Covid hospitals, Howrah has AND THE NEED sector which provides input to almost all kinds of indus- 10 safe homes with total bed capacity of 486 spread over OF THE HOUR, tries. It also provides affordable housing to all who want Howrah Municipal Corporation and rural areas for pro- MUKTA ARYA, accommodation near Kolkata. In a nutshell, sectors such viding effective institutional care to asymptomatic/ mild- as MSME, large scale industries, real estate industry has ly symptomatic patients depending on their require- IAS, favourable environment to accelerate their growth for ments. Overall positivity rate figure for the district has DISTRICT which Howrah was ranked amongst the best districts for come down from 6% in August to 4.2% in October till MAGISTRATE, scheme like Anandadhara for credit support to SHG date. Since inception, Howrah has already conducted HOWRAH, women and credit support by state to MSME sector. 95,150 Rapid Antigen Tests and 99,369 RTPCR samples SHARES till date. Hence, total number of tests conducted stands HOWRAH ON A ROLL at 1,94,519 as on date, taking RTPCR and antigen togeth- HOW THE I have been posted in Howrah since June 2019 and have er. Currently, Howrah is testing 2,500 to 3,000 samples GOVERNMENT witnessed two phases of pre Covid and post Covid. on daily basis. Of total positive cases, 89.2% has recov- IS FOCUSING During the lockdown, when everything came to a ered/ discharged. Number of containment zones has ON THE standstill, Howrah did not cease to work as it houses also come down from 152 in May-June to 59 in October. GROWTH OF essential industries like ITC, Amazon, Pespsico, etc which THIS DISTRICT involved in food production, food packaging, medicine, FOCUSED APPROACH apart from road transport with two railway divisions. The state government has done a lot in implementing AND ITS Howrah continued to work in these tough times while several reforms. Recently, the government has come up SURROUNDING fighting the invisible enemy with active support from with schemes like Utkarsh Bangla, Anandadhara, AREAS different non-government organisations like Plastic Kanyashree, Rupashree and Swapna Bhor Programme to Federation, CREDAI chapter of Howrah Hooghly, Uluberia promote development at the grassroots level. People Chambers, Hosiery Association, Foundry cluster and here are disciplined and determined to move the wheel many others who participated and worked tirelessly with of economic growth and restore normalcy. This positive district administration and police in making people attitude and determination will definitely place Howrah aware and distributed masks, sanitisers, food packets amongst the best place for housing, industry, education, and medicine to the needy. tourism in the next five years to come.

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PANCHDEEP CONSTRUCTION LTD TOWERING in Delhi! “Standing on the decks, visitors can enjoy a panoramic view of Howrah city, the flowing Ganges and also Kolkata,” vouches Chaudhary. At the top two decks, there will be telescopes that will help visitors to get a long-range view of WONDER ascending and descending of aeroplanes. AT FOUR TIMES THE HEIGHT OF There will be two jet speed elevators with a SHAHEED MINAR, AND EVEN capacity of 27 persons each in the tower that will take visitors to the decks in just 1 dizzy minute. TALLER THAN THE QUTUB MINAR, “There are two escape stairs for emergency use PANCHDEEP TOWER WILL BE A for the visitors,” mentions Chaudhary. GAME CHANGER IN THIS PART The park is situated at East West Road (part of proposed Ring Road) and is around 5 km away elilious Park was developed and inaugurat- from Second Hooghly bridge and 3 km from ed in early 2007 under a direction of the . It connects with South BHigh Court of Calcutta (Green Bench). Eastern Railway within a distance of 100 metres. Initially, the project was not a big success. There This project is being implemented along with were hardly any visitors and the Big Bazaar, which Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) as a PPP was a part of the park premises, project and the tower will be a part of this project closed down because of dimin- only. “The design of the tower has been approved ishing footfalls. That was by the Civil Department of Indian Institute of before Ram Ratan Engineering, Science and Technology (IIEST). We Chaudhary stepped in. A have also received clearance from the Civil visionary developer of Aviation Department, GoI for the tall the Howrah-Hooghly tower,” explains Chaudhary. terrain with over four Earlier, this 25-acre park on decades of experience Belilious Road, Howrah had an in real estate, he pro- entry fee of ` 25 per head with posed a makeover on a extra charges for rides and mammoth scale. The task boating. A 15 bigha lake in the was extremely uphill. But park provides for entertain- all that is history now. ment, including boat rides. Come 2021, and Howrah’s This amusement park will also biggest amusement park spread have Water Sports, Giant Whe- over 25 acres, a gigantic 400+ feet high el, Striking Cars, Scary House, tower with multiple observation glass decks, Carousel Ride, Rock Climbing, Go complete with rides, water parks, mini-audito- Kart, Kids Zone, Mini auditorium, rium, lake and museum will be a reality for guest rooms, banquet halls and many everyone. Each deck will have a coffee shop, a other facilities. This Panchdeep Tower, once com- snack bar, an ice-cream parlour, a curio shop for plete, will be one of the tallest tower in South East souvenirs….among many other attractions. Asia. There will be a revolving restaurant at a Panchdeep Tower, when complete, will be height of 400 ft. “It will be the pride of India and almost four times the height of the Shaheed Minar boost tourism here,” concludes Chaudhary. at Esplanade and even taller than the Qutub Minar

36 Bricks & Bytes PAST PROJECTS CLEAN & GREEN

REALISINGREALISING AA GETTYIMAGES GARBAGE-FREE LIFE owrah stands out with a population density ROLE OF CREDAI HOWRAH-HOOGHLY close to 22000 per sqkm and concentration of T-5000 involves large housing complexes to segregate Hindustrial and commercial centres. Constrain- waste by household, and the rest of the activity is ed by resource crunch and an ever-growing daily pro- taken care by the third party agency engaged by the duction of garbage, the city administration is keen on RWA after being recommended by the joint task force a comprehensive plan to tackle garbage menace. of the corporation and CREDAI. Objective is to divert THE JOURNEY OF at least 75% of the solid waste generated from such THE STRATEGY IN PLACE complexes from entering into municipal stream of MEANINGFUL A robust strategy holds key to any solid waste man- waste management. CREDAI has been playing the role PARTNERSHIPS agement (SWM) reforms. Though there are many suc- the partnering organisation and engaging with HMC, WITH cessful models across India, each is unique to a par- developer and the RWAs. As part of the ward level ini- ORGANISATIONS ticular city. Instead of heavy upfront investment in tiative, every household in Ward 22 was provided with creating waste processing facilities, the aim was to two bins — blue and green — for segregation of TO HANDLE SOLID focus on the upstream activities — waste segregation waste. Street corner meetings were held simultane- WASTE at household level, collection and transportation. ously with GPS mapping of households and commer- MANAGEMENT Capacity building was initiated through procurement cial establishments, marking litter spots in consulta- of more than 250 battery-operated vehicles for pri- tion with stakeholders and extensive IEC activity. HAS JUST BEGUN mary collection and training the human resources. AND THERE IS A Overall strategy was a three-pronged one — SPREADING AWARENESS LONG WAY (1) T-5000: The target is to develop in-house SWM A one-day conclave, organised by HMC in association TO GO, AVERS arrangements within large housing complexes, initial- with CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly, was attended by more ly including 5,000 apartments, as a self-sustainable than 150 student volunteers of the Green Volunteers BIJIN KRISHNA, model, (2) Focus on one large ward with at least group who had already been trained in SWM. The part- IAS, 25,000 population and create a comprehensive nership with Nature Mates helped HMC EX-COMMISSIONER, model of waste segregation, collection and to engage with children and instill HOWRAH transportation, and (3) Massive IEC activ- the sense of responsible waste ities on the focus area and among chil- management in them. These are MUNICIPAL dren. SWM needs involvement of citi- baby steps. What makes it sig- CORPORATION zens. There must be a partnership with nificant is its ‘right’ direction organisations that are capable of playing and the institutional the role of a conduit between the citizens arrangements and systematic and the administration. mode of implementation.

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COMING OF AGE

To maximise expedi- ency, environmental sus- tainability and cost effi- FOCUSING ON ciencies, the construction IMPLEMENTING space is now looking at DIGITALISATION AND solutions: NEW CONSTRUCTION BUILDING TECHNIQUES TO INFORMATION ENHANCE THE MODELLING QUALITY AND SAFETY (BIM) OF PROJECTS, THESE This technolo- gy is used for NEW TECHNOLOGIES planning, ARE RESHAPING THE designing, con- CONSTRUCTION struction, and operation of the facility. It helps INDUSTRY architects, engineers and con- structors visualise what is to be built in a simulated envi- ronment to identify any potential design, construction or operational issues.

DRONES Drones are the most widely used emerging construction technology as they can conduct jobsite inspections, identify potential TECH’S hazards and can monitor workers throughout the day to ensure everyone is working safely.

ROBOTICS Globally, the use of robots is growing at the rate of 6.73% annu- THE WAY ally, while the growth of usage in India has been around 12%. Robots can tackle the complexities of mega projects and can [email protected] also help cope with mundane activities like lifting, shifting, load- ing-unloading and other repetitive jobs, reducing dependence on eing a major contributor towards India’s GDP, the con- human intervention and external factors such as fatigue, inter- struction industry employs around 33 million people. est, skills, work timing and human errors. BAccording to a research by KPMG, the development of India is highly dependent upon the infrastructure sector and the 3D PRINTING country has become a large market for infrastructure and con- 3D printing allow construction companies to print out an entire struction activities contributing US $738.5 billion in FY 2017, and home faster and cheaper compared to the traditional method. It is expected to become third largest market in the world by 2025. has become a part of the preconstruction process and helps pre- The volume of construction output is predicted to grow by vent problems or disasters before construction begins. 85% to $15.5 trillion globally by the end of this decade. As per a PWC report, India, along with China and the US, will drive the CLOUD AND MOBILE TECHNOLOGY segment by accounting for 57% of the overall growth. Cloud-based solutions help contractors to work on the same As India is witnessing rapid urbanisation, the government is sets of data across the back office and you will find projects run- giving massive importance to infrastructure development of the ning in real-time with accurate data and digitisation. nation. Several plans in this ambit like smart city mission, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), SITE SENSORS New Metro Rail Policy, Housing for all, North East Special These sensors are mounted in the construction sites to monitor Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS) etc points at the things like temperature, noise levels, dust particulates and augmented focus in this direction. volatile organic compounds to help limit exposure to workers.

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DESIGN CALL

CERTAIN APPROACHES NEED TO BE ADAPTED TO CREATE EFFICIENCIES IN THE REAL ESTATE INDUSTRY AND FOR THE BEST OUTCOME, STATES

VIVEK SINGH RATHORE GETTYIMAGES IT PAYS TO BE and not just by reference or convenience. Starting from the induction of a vision, the team should be reviewed periodically for PROFESSIONAL improvements and training. A clear accountable hierarchy should be estab- ny real estate industry is support- design brief over time which results in lished in the office and the field. We should ed by two important aspects — time inefficiencies and design fatigue. allow the project lead enough freedom AThe evolving aspirations of the Planning should highlight the SWOT — and discretion to structure his team and prospective customers, and Resource strength, weakness, opportunity and modify processes. A heterogeneous mix, optimisation which essentially is layered threats — ensuring we spend 70% of our radial networking work culture against lin- by time, technology and pricing. In our time on the strengths and the opportuni- ear, formal and informal review system, country, a majority of the real estate ties and devote 30% to the weaknesses care and concern, consultant interaction sector is not professionally supported and and threats. Planning in a design project is programmes etc are a few suggestions to hence, they address the former by often 25-30% of the project life, while render an effective and committed team. speculation or manipulation rather than today we often budget only 3-5% in our A well-conducted team gets you almost research and innovation and later just by time schedule. One should employ 12-5% of profit margins. hard negotiations rather than smart architects and consultants for their working. There are two important superior skills and structure formal PROCESS OF PROCUREMENT approaches towards creating efficiencies accountabilities for efficiencies. PMC or It often referred as purchase lead by a in Indian realty industry, namely the 3P project management team, either strict negotiator has to be completely (Planning, People and Procurement) in-house or outsourced, should be respon- looked into. A well-laid procurement and the 4M (Mix, Manpower, Methodology sible for effective coordination and bound process contributes to 10-12% of the prof- and Management). by structured schedule of calendar. it margins. The entire process involves Surveys, feasibility reports, land/ legal education of product updates, training in EFFICACY OF PLANNING clearances, consultant commissioning, installation process, understanding of The planning component, a part of the 3P departmental liaising, DPRs clearances, process engineering, vendor interaction approach, in a project life is laid primordial budget financing, contingency planning, workshops with the team of consultants, importance. This is because a well-done EIAs, master planning, concepts design, site engineering and planning teams, etc. desk work is a project half done. It starts schematics design, design development It is often not prudent for go for L1 ten- from the importance of homework - prod- etc are some subparts of this calendar. dering. It is found that 65 out of 100 pro- uct profiling, product mix and product There should be a minimum of 4-stage curement closures in Indian real estate positioning being concluded by proper budget making in place. A well-laid industry based on L1 system fail to keep demand surveys and market research. plan can contribute to almost 25-30% of up with marketing expectations, or pro- Most of the promoters, builders and devel- profit margin! vide efficient aftersales services or pro- opers rely on architects to suggest the vide for an extended technical support in product mix rather than scientifically pro- PEOPLE POWER execution processes, accountabilities, etc. viding them a product/ design brief or pro- First, one should aim at hiring by qualifica- The author is principal gramme. This often leads to an evolving tion, experience and accountability index ³ architect, SALIENT

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RULES/ REGULATIONS LEGALLY BOUND A DEVELOPER SHOULD HAVE KEEP IN MIND the booking amount and refund the bal- A ROBUST MECHANISM OF ance amount. Since the term ’booking O In case the amount forfeited is termed as amount’ has not being defined in the CHECKS AND BALANCES TO ’cancellation fee’, the same would entail the levy of WBHIRA Act, reference can be made to ENSURE COMPLIANCE BOTH GST. Since, it’s a complete separate transaction, the developer should raise an invoice on the allottee, section 13 (1) of the WBHIRA Act and UNDER THE GST REGIME AND and non-compliance may entail penal provisions. such forfeiture will be limited to 10% of WBHIRA; THE AGREEMENTS O Since the forfeiture amount cannot exceed 10% the amount received by the developer SHOULD BE WORDED of the amount received by the developer towards towards the cost of the apartment/ plot the cost of the apartment/ plot, GST should always prior to execution of the Agreement to be included and computed on a cum-tax basis. CAREFULLY TO PROTECT Sale. Few points to be considered are: O However, the forfeiture amount is termed as INTERESTS, STATE ’liquidated damages’ so there is a possibility that it RAJARSHI DASGUPTA may not attract GST. RESALE AS A CONDITION FOR REFUND AND SWARNALI CHANDA O The clauses of the agreement should be worded carefully to incorporate necessary amend- It has been noticed that the developers he Real Estate (Regulation and ments, to safeguard the rights of the developer. tweak the language of the Agreement for Development) Act, 2016 (RERA) O In case of cancellation, the option of raising Sale in such manner that, the developer Taims to strengthen the regulations credit note for cancellation of booking and adjust- reselling the said apartment to a new of the real estate sector and to provide ment of GST paid is allowed only till allottee is made a condition precedent end of September of the next protection to home buyers. West Bengal financial year. Hence, for cancel- for the refund to the cancelling allottee, has separate a legislation - West Bengal lation beyond such period, and differential price, if any, is adjusted Housing Industry Regulation Act, 2017 any refund of GST to the from the said refund. Here, it is relevant (WBHIRA Act) similar to RERA, together allottees needs to be to discuss Clause 7.5 of the proforma carefully looked into and with the West Bengal Housing Industry Agreement for Sale as appended with the examined as such pay- Regulation Rules, 2018 (WBHIRA Rules). ment may entail undue WBHIRA Rules. The said clause means Section 13 (1) of the WBHIRA Act man- financial hardship in the that no amount other than the booking dates inter alia that no developer shall hands of the amount, can be forfeited by the develop- receive any sum more than 10% of the developers. er in case of aforesaid cancellation by the cost of the apartment/ plot without first allottee, and the balance amount shall be executing and registering an Agreement refunded to the allottee within 45 days for Sale. The term ’cost of the apart- from the date of such cancellation. ment/plot’ in terms of the Explanation Adding a condition of resale by the devel- provided in Clause 1.2 of the proforma oper prior to making the said refund or Agreement for Sale as appended with the adjusting the differential price against the WBHIRA Rules, includes applicable GST refund amount in case the resale is car- component in the total price of the apart- ried out at a lower price, defies the ment/plot. Thus, the sum paid by the object of timely protection to allottee under the head of application home-buyers under the WBHIRA money or booking amount, being 10% Act. Therefore, it is recommended of the total cost of the apartment/plot, that the purpose and intention of is inclusive of the GST component. the proforma Agreement for Sale is adhered to in principle and CANCELLATION any deviation changing the OF BOOKING core essence of the same The developer at the time of can- may be litigated. cellation, at its discretion may ³Dasgupta is ED and refund the entire amount to the head of Taxes, AQUILAW allottees or may deduct GETTYIMAGES while Chanda is senior associate, AQUILAW

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ART OF LIVING

BEDROOM Operating lights, ceiling fans, ACs, smart TVs. All respond to voice commands

LIVING ROOM Smart TVs, ACs, tubelights, bulbs, air purifiers. KITCHEN All have IoT Smart fridge, sensors to washing machine, switch them on chimney, exhaust and off fans, smoke alarms. Exhaust fans CONNECTED start working on sensing rising level of fumes MOVE OVER INSIDE SCIENCE FICTION; INTERNET OF THINGS IS DRIVING HOME AUTOMATION SMARTLY AND SMART [email protected] them smart. He now uses a voice-enabled remote HOMES to control all these equipment, instead of depend- s a habit, Tom Joseph, 50, bathes twice a ing on manually operated remote controls for each. THEREBY day. This routine makes him reach for the “When I return home in the evening, it is like the ADDING TO A Ageyser switch at least four times daily. A devices know what I want — the air conditioner and SENSE couple of months ago, Joseph bought a smart plug TV start even before I get a snack from the kitchen OF SAFETY and his life changed. He doesn’t have to bother abo- to settle down and relax,” says Joseph, president of AND SECURITY ut switching the machine on or off. It is progra- Tuya Smart India, an internet of things (IoT) startup. AND MAKING mmed to function for an hour at 7:00 am and then He is excited about getting rid of mundane tasks. at 7:00 pm. The smart plug also responds to voice “We no longer call it the future. Smart is current.” LIFE commands. So Joseph, based in the National Capital Next on his list are smart curtains and locks. SIMPLER Region, gets hot water whenever he asks for it. Across households in India, people like Joseph Impressed by the technology, Joseph has now are making a quiet shift to smart equipment as they retrofitted his old air conditioner and TV to make look for more gear that can take care of routine

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tasks — operating lights, fans, air conditioners, when it is time for service. This almost lifelike behav- heaters, air purifiers, door locks, cameras iour in machines can also help a user secure his and more. DEVICES, EACH WITH home better. A smart doorbell, for example, can The smart home market comprises net- A UNIQUE IP ADDRESS, send an image of a person outside the door to ARE CONNECTED worked devices and related services that your smartphone. DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY enable automation. It could be a camera that TO THE HOME WIFI MAKING You can remotely talk to the visitor and monitors the house or a ceiling fan that increase IT EASY TO CONTROL even open a digital lock via the app. or decreases speed sensing the comfort of the occu- THEM FROM While smart speakers like Amazon Echo and pants of the room. ANYWHERE Google Homemade users familiar with the concept of At present, a smart home is about connected things. using voice commands to stream music and news, it is Devices, each with a unique IP address, are connected directly now light bulbs to curtains that are getting a smart makeover. or indirectly to the home WiFi making it easy to control them. Sanjay Gupta, senior VP and business head of consumer light- These devices can also monitor certain aspects of a ing at Wipro, reckons that up to 2 million homes in India have at user’s life. Software tracks a person’s habits, like the music least a smart bulb that can be switched on or off and can adjust they like in the morning and play that, smart mattresses adjust the brightness on a voice command. to a person’s back, smart mirrors point out health issues, This shift to smart homes with intelligence in-built in appliances sensors in toilets check for potential health issues by scanning is accelerating. Google works with 3,500 brands that have 30,000 waste before flushing. smart products in the market. Wipro Lighting gets 3% of its Sumit Padmakar Joshi, vice-chairman & MD of Signify business from smart bulbs in 2019-20 and expects to get 15% by Innovations India (formerly Philips Lighting India), says, “From FY22. The starting point to make a home smart could be an being a concept, the word smart has gradually evolved. appropriate light bulb or speaker. Consumers now have access to intuitive technologies and virtual IDC India says there are four broad uses of assistants which can remind them about daily chores, plan their smart home devices: entertainment and video, day and operate their appliances.” lighting, surveillance and appliances. The first Companies are responding to this demand by flooding the category is the most popular with smart TVs market with smart devices capable of responding to and streaming videos. According to IDC, voice and the ambience. According to market 60% of the premium TVs sold last year research firm IDC, 753,000 smart speakers were smart. Jaipal Singh, lead analyst for were shipped to the Indian market smart home and wearables, IDC India, in 2018. In 2019, this is expected to reach says, “Alexa, Google Home sharpened around 1 million. the users’ focus towarsexploring more use cases on voice com- BOOM IN BUSINESS mands. Music and entertainment The Indian smart home market is expected to remain the top use case in smart be around $6 billion by 2022, a two-fold homes.” increase from $3 billion estimated in 2020, according to Statista. Globally, that number is expected to reach $53.45 billion by 2022. Panasonic, for example, launched an all-smart range of appliances Manish Sharma, president & CEO of Panasonic India & South Asia, says, “Machines equipped with sensors will be able to comprehend whether an activity in a room is normal or if there is discomfort for

the occupants. That is intelligence.” Customers can THINKSTOCK operate the devices from anywhere and know how much power an appliance consumes. The technology also does self-diagnosis. Let us say an air conditioner is drawing more electricity because of a choked filter. A sensor will send an alert to a technician to come and fix it. Then comes personalisation — depending on the temper- ature, an air conditioner automatically adjusts its settings. Smart devices will also call customer care automatically

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AN ETERNAL JOURNEY

founded at the close of the 17th century on the site of an earlier village, , on the Hooghly’s left bank. After the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763), which brought Britain and France into conflict across five continents, the English East India Company emerged as the dominant Eur- opean power on the river. Calcutta began a period of growth that would transform it into one of India’s greatest cities; second only to London among the most important cities of the British Empire. In the 1830s, Dwarkanath Tagore shot to prominence as an enterprising Bengali businessman who became wealthy trad- ing in silk, indigo, and sugar before invest- ing in ocean shipping and beginning a steamer service on the Hooghly to rival the British steam navigation firms. Later, THE SACRED the Swadeshi movement included the launch of new Bengali-run steamer servic- es that once again turned the Hooghly into an arena of commercial competition. Calcutta served as the exit for the thou- sands of indentured labourers from Bihar and other areas of East India who were STREAM sent to the West Indies to replace the SUBHASH CHAKRABORTY PROBES HOW THE manual labour that had previously been INTEGRATION OF HOOGHLY RIVER INTO THE provided by enslaved Africans; and which is the reason there are cricketers’ names GLOBAL NETWORK FOR THE EXCHANGE OF like Kallicharran in West Indies. GOODS, PEOPLE AND IDEAS WAS SHAPED BY In the 20th century, Calcutta was one of THE PORTUGUESE, DUTCH, DANISH, FRENCH the most significant ports for migration across the Bay of Bengal, welcoming AND BRITISH COLONIAL PRACTICES migrants from East and Southeast Asia in he most important river of West 16th century, they found a diverse popula- particular—not least during the tumul- Bengal, since time immemorial tion living along its banks. tuous upheavals of World War II. THooghly has also been the centre The Hooghly and Ganges were vital The turn of the 20th century witnessed th for industrial development. Until the 17 arteries linking Bengal with the Hindustani a remarkable flourishing of Bengal litera- century, when the main course of the heartland. The principal attraction of ture and art, epitomised above all by the Ganges shifted resolutely eastward, the Bengal to Europeans was the trading writings of . In his cre- Hooghly was the major waterway through opportunities that it offered. Word spread ative outputs, and those of many contem- which the Ganges entered the Bay of among Portuguese traders that Bengal poraries, the Hooghly was endowed with Bengal. was a land of abundant natural wealth an otherworldly quality. The land on both sides of the river was and possibilities for trade. The Portuguese The Hooghly today faces critical chal- extremely fertile. Archaeological evidence traders on the Hooghly arrived each spring lenges. Though the river remains an artery confirms that rice farming communities, with a shipload of produce—usually for the transport, and an important base probably from the Himalayas and Indian spices from across the Indian Ocean—to for Indian naval ships, industrial activity plains, first settled there some 3,000 years unload on the markets of Bengal. has stagnated. Like most rivers on the th ago. By the 11 century, the river was The boom of Portuguese Hooghly subcontinent, it has suffered hugely from attracting merchants from China, would last just 50 years. By the close of pollution. But for many, the river remains a Southeast Asia, Ceylon, western India and the 17th century, Dutch, French, and divine as much as a secular force. the near east. When Europeans sailed up English settlements had been founded. ³ The author is a former journalist and the Hooghly for the first time in the early The English settlement of Calcutta was eminent columnist with leading dailies

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HOWRAH BRIDGE IN MOVIES

Do Bigha Zamin Bari Theke Paliye Parash Pathar Neel Akasher Neechey Howrah Bridge China Town Amar Prem CONNECTING

Calcutta 71 GETTYIMAGES Padatik WITH CARE Gandhi THE ICONIC HOWRAH BRIDGE, VIDYASAGAR SETU AND NIVEDITA SETU, AMONG Paar OTHER BRIDGES ACROSS THE HOOGHLY RIVER, ARE LIFELINES FOR THOSE Ram Teri WHO DWELL IN THIS REGION AND NEED TO ACCESS THE OTHER SIDE Ganga Maili The Bengali Night [email protected] VIDYASAGAR SETU Named after the great erudite and reformer Pandit City of Joy hink of Kolkata and the first thing likely to come Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and called Second Shadows of Time to your mind would be the Howrah Bridge. A Hooghly Bridge, Vidyasagar Setu is reckoned as one of Tbridge with a suspended span over the Hooghly the longest bridges of its type across India. It is also Yuva river, it is one that never sleeps except on bandh days acknowledged as one of the longest bridges of Asia. Parineeta maybe. Though the bridge is crowded with all means This cable-stayed bridge covers a little over 457 of transportation possible through the day, take a meters and has a deck of 35 meters width. The build- Mon Amour walk on it and you will be struck by a sense of ing process of the bridge was initiated in 1978 and it The Namesake immense beauty in the way the huge expanse of river was eventually opened to public in 1992. The bridge Hooghly flows under it. carries the NH 117, also known as the Kona Blessy’s 2008 Commissioned in 1943, the bridge was originally Expressway. With six lanes of traffic, the bridge can Malayalam Film named the New Howrah Bridge, because it replaced a carry more than 85,000 vehicles every day. Calcutta News pontoon bridge at the same location linking Howrah Aadhavan and erstwhile Calcutta. Twenty-two years later in NIVEDITA SETU 1965, it was renamed Rabindra Setu after Tagore. Also called Second Vivekananda Setu, this bridge is Love Aaj Kal However, it is popularly known as the Howrah Bridge. India’s first multi-span, single-plane cable supported Ekti Tarar Khonje The daily traffic on this bridge is approximately extra-dosed bridge; with short pylons and seven con- 100,000 vehicles and more than 150,000 pedestrians, tinuous spans of 110 m, totalling a length of 880 m Kahaani making it one of the busiest cantilever bridge in the (2,887 feet). Nivedita Setu has won an Award of Barfi! world. The third-longest cantilever bridge at the time Excellence from the American Segmental Bridge of its construction, the Howrah Bridge is currently the Institute, USA. that connects Piku sixth-longest bridge of its type in the world. It serves the meeting point of NH 16 with NH 19 at Dankuni to Lion as the gateway to Kolkata, connecting it to the NH 12, NH 112, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Howrah Station, one of the five intercity train termi- International Airport and northern parts of Kolkata Dhadak nus stations serving Howrah and Kolkata. passes over the bridge.

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ALCOVE REALTY

AA NEWNEW DAWNDAWN

he rise of the Howrah-Hooghly region started in The project New Kolkata is at Serampore in Hooghly early 2005 when development of residential district. Located strategically on GT Road, it can be Tprojects started coming up across Kona easily accessed by local train from Howrah Station and CONNECTIVITY Expressway and gradually progressed in multiple is also connected to other parts of south Bengal by rail HAS BEEN THE pockets of Howrah and Hooghly over the subsequent and road. In addition, our project is the first in eastern years. Post development of Kona Expressway, India to have its own ferry service connecting it to PRIMARY DEMAND improvement of roads also took place, which in turn Kolkata through river Hooghly. We strongly believe that DRIVER FOR helped in reducing travel time from south Bengal to this service will not only help the residents of New RESIDENTIAL Kolkata. This in turn helped to improve demand in this Kolkata to commute easily to their respective PROPERTY IN region. One could say that smooth connectivity of workplace but also make travelling a delight. HOWRAH AND roads, along with widely-spread suburban rail network New Kolkata boasts of countless USPs that makes it HOOGHLY helped to develop these areas over the years. Today different from any other project — right from the Howrah and Hooghly region is self-sufficient with its tallest towers in Hooghly to the largest residential own infrastructure related to healthcare, education, clubhouse. It is also the first pre-certified platinum rated green building in this part of the country. While OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, many other amenities are being developed for the res- HOWRAH-HOOGHLY HAS EMERGED AS idents, the most unique proposition is its three-way A STRONGER VALUE PROPOSITION FOR connectivity, making it the only project in eastern India BUYERS LOOKING FOR PROPERTIES WITH accessible by rail, road and river. WORLD-CLASS AMENITIES AND EVENTUALLY This project has received overwhelming response ATTRACTED A WIDE PROFILE OF HOME BUYERS from not only Bengal, but across India and abroad. Participation has been received from all segments and Ajay Kumar Shroff, managing director, Alcove Realty professions which include doctors, professors, sports personalities, teachers, engineers, senior executives of top MNCs, IT professionals, executives of PSUs, industries, logistic parks, organised markets, etc. business people and so forth. Connectivity has been the primary demand driver. On offer is a special payment plan for home buyers. Subsequently, availability of large land parcel in this No EMI. No load offer. A buyer has to pay only 20% of region helped city-based developers to offer better the consideration at the time of agreement, while the value products to end-users at an affordable price. remaining 80% to be paid at the time of possession. Over the past few years, Howrah-Hooghly has So, one who doesn’t want to bear the EMI burden so emerged as a stronger value proposition for buyers early on can directly benefit from this offer. They can looking for properties with world-class amenities and avail the loan at the time of possession and start pay- eventually attracted a wide profile of home buyers. ing their EMIs once they start living at New Kolkata.

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PRICE TRENDS

Howrah Road ` 2,206 - ` 3,604 per sqft Howrah Maidan ` 2,431 - ` 4,405 per sqft ` 3,010 - ` 4,454 per sqft Santragachi ` 2,222 - ` 8,036 per sqft ` 2,708 - ` 3,504 per sqft Kadam Tala ` 2,600 - ` 4,500 per sqft Botanical Garden Area ` 3,125 - ` 4,455 per sqft Tikia Para ` 11,875 per sqft ` 1,467 - ` 2,545 per sqft Ankurhati ` 1296 per sqft Sankrail ` 3,604 per sqft ` 1,091 - ` 8,682 per sqft Hindmotor ` 1,812 - ` 2,903 per sqft Kona ` 1,304 - ` 2,961 per sqft Das Nagar ` 3,009 per sqft (average) Uluberia ` 1,667 - ` 3,115 per sqft Belur ` 1,818 - ` 4,110 per sqft Bally ` 2,328 - ` 3,791 per sqft Rishra ` 2600 per sqft Konnagar ` 1,978 - ` 3,042 per sqft Dankuni ` 1,897 - ` 4,444 per sqft Uttarpara ` 2,324 - ` 3,833 per sqft Serampore ` 1,918 - ` 3,680 per sqft Shalimar ` 3,750 - ` 5,000 per sqft G T Road ` 2,737 - ` 21,951 per sqft ` 1,600 - ` 6,250 per sqft ` 3,763 - ` 3,807 per sqft Chandannagar ` 2,000 - ` 7,000 per sqft (Prices are indicative)

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Domjur ` 2,333 - ` 3,988 per sqft ` 1,019 - ` 5,455 per sqft ` 2,000 - ` 3,507 per sqft Baksara ` 2,145 - ` 12,500 per sqft Salap ` 1,488 - ` 14,880 per sqft Hatisal ` 4,545 per sqft Makardah ` 2,400 - ` 2,647 per sqft Mali Panchghara ` 3,846 per sqft Manikpur ` 4,202 per sqft Andul Road ` 2,264 - ` 3,069 per sqft Chunavati ` 2,150 - ` 4,861 per sqft Ichapur ` 2,600 - ` 7,200 per sqft ` 1,921 - ` 2,182 per sqft ` 1,555 - ` 3,524 per sqft Tribeni ` 1,400 - ` 3,000 per sqft ` 2,200 - ` 2,300 per sqft Danesh Sheikh Lane ` 2,271 - ` 3,728 per sqft Belilious Road ` 2,300 - ` 8,515 per sqft Foreshore Road ` 2,441 - ` 4,405 per sqft ` 2,592 - ` 3,230 per sqft ` 1,850 - ` 3,651 per sqft Bhadrakali ` 2,252 - ` 2,932 per sqft Uttarpara Kotrung ` 2,168 - ` 3,018 per sqft Bakra ` 1,543 - ` 3,600 per sqft Tarakeshwar ` 1,883 - ` 2,800 per sqft Dobson Road ` 2,300 - ` 4,515 per sqft ` 2,500 - ` 4,521 per sqft (Prices are indicative) Source: www.magicbricks.com

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FOOD FERVOUR AN EXPLOSION OF VARIETY CULINARY EXTRAVAGANZA SWEETS AND SAVOURIES ARE AN During my childhood, I used to hate travelling in trains. But during my vaca- INTEGRAL PART OF BENGALI CULINARY tion, we used to take the train to meet TRADITION. ANJAN CHATTERJEE TALKS my grandmother who lives in Hooghly. ABOUT THE FOOD ORIGINS IN HOWRAH My only motivation in the entire journey was to have lebu lozenge which would AND HOOGHLY be sold in different flavours and colours. Today, the cultural tapestry of Hooghly and Howrah has become colourful yet engalis are known to be great with palm jaggery or rosewater) by complex. Each area is recognised for connoisseurs of food (khaddo Surjya Kumar Modak. being unique in its sweets. Monohora Broshik). In fact, there is a saying (sweet of the heart) of Janai, Khaichur that Bengalis don’t eat to live, they live ULTIMATE DELICACY of , Sondesh of Guptipara, to eat. In traditional Bengali household So, what is so special in Howrah and Pantua of , Karakanda of every meal is detailed and elaborated. Hooghly when it comes to food? Ah! Khanakul, Babarshah of Kheerpai Needless to say, it is extremely crucial the Posto or poppy seeds are a delicacy (sweet soaked in jaggery). Don’t get sur- for a Bengali to have a sweet or curd in every Bengali household with its prised if you happen to come across the after each meal. origin in Hooghly. A lunch here must jalebis or the boondi to be white in include a Posto Chingri (prawn curry colour (known as Shaada Jilapi & STEEPED IN SYRUPY prepared with poppy seeds). Kumro is Shaada Bondey) found in Kamarpukur. HISTORY yet another delicacy. From the crispy Despite increasing urbanisation and In ancient Bengal, Hooghly, was the Kumro Phool er Bora (dried pumpkin the growth of urban culture, the curious centre point of all operations. Bandel pulse ball), to the sweetness of Kachu- combination of culinary cultures devel- was a part of the Chinsurah Portuguese Kumror Ghonto (mixed vegetable dish oped in the 18th century Bengal has still cantonment and later became home to cooked with pumpkin), or Kumro Phool its relevance to an extent even today. some of the Portuguese who employed er Daal Bata (Dried pumpkin in soaked cooks and taught them the technique of lentils) followed with Machher Ombol curdling milk. Thus began Bengal’s (fish chutney) are considered to be an ³ The writer is an Indian hotelier and culinary history with Sandesh and eclectic part of Bengal’s founder of speciality restaurants Rosogolla followed with the culinary heritage. invention of ‘Jolbhora’ (a large sweet filled

SWEET BENGAL

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GALLERY OF INITIATIVES

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QUICK GETAWAYS

TRAVEL TREAT [email protected] Belur Math is the headquarters of the treat for the eyes, food for the soul and the Math and Mission, founded by , a best stress-buster ever, there is hardly any- chief disciple of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. On the FROM LAKES Athing more rejuvenating than travelling. west bank of Hooghly river at Belur, it is a place of POPULAR WITH Howrah-Hooghly belt stands out with its offerings of pilgrimage for people from all over the world MIGRATORY BIRDS natural beauty, historical monuments and religious professing different religious faiths. AND PICNICKERS TO sites. Here’s taking a look at a few prominent ones: HOUSES OF KAMARPUKUR PANITRAS-SAMTABER Coming to Hooghly, Kamarpukur is renowned all over RENOWNED It is the home place of the immortal Bengali novelist the world as the birthplace of Sri Ramakrishna and is NOVELISTS AND Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. His two-storied house, frequented by lakhs of visitors every year. Devotees PLACES OF at Panitras, is a museum now. It was here that he cre- visit Kamarpukur not only to pay their homage but also PILGRIMAGES ated some of his masterpieces like Abhagir Swarga, to get spiritually elevated. THROWN IN, THE Bamuner Meye, Ram er Sumati, Mahesh, Srikanta. GURAP HOWRAH-HOOGHLY INDIAN BOTANIC GARDEN Nandadulal Temple, an aatchala temple with triple- BELT IS A HOTSPOT The Indian Botanic Garden on about 1,000 bighas, lies arched entrance porch, and fully decorated facade, OF TOURIST on the bank of the river Hooghly just outside the stands within a large temple complex. It was built in DESTINATIONS Municipal area of Howrah bordering its southern 1751 by Ramdeb Nag. A more famous scion of this boundary line and adjoins the compound of the IIEST family is Keshab Chandra Nag, whose Bengali on the south. This green belt is considered to be the mathematics books is a must for students. lungs of the industrial and urbanised city of Howrah. GUPTIPARA Guptipara in Chinsurah is known for its terracotta A popular picnic spot in , Gadiara is at temples. The temples here have a unique architecture the confluence of the Hooghly and Rupnarayan rivers. — thatched hut-shaped structures with terracotta The ruins of Fort Mornington Point built by Lord Clive, carvings, the unique aatchala temple with colourful and the lighthouse are prominent attractions there. paintings and ekratna or single pinnacled temples.

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HOWRAH HERE WE COME…

owrah is not my birth place; it is the place which has mistakes. Once a teacher at Hindu School, a successful playwright nursed me. We had come to Howrah a few years before at Kohinoor Theatre, close to Girish Ghosh, in fact his first book is Hthe World War II from Banagram, the land of Pather dedicated to him, cleared his BSc and BN, it is still unclear why Panchali, and it really gives me a lot of pleasure at this fag end of such a person would reach Banagram and start practising law. my life to think how upon reaching it, I unknowingly became a Banagram lost its importance much later and the jurisdiction of miniscule part of this much maligned place. local court became smaller. Pursuit of higher earnings drove Baba We were fine amidst the lush greenery of Banagram. But then, away from Banagram into the unknown territory of Howrah. one day Ma said, we were all moving to Kolkata. The reasons I was a bit too mature for my age, and would eavesdrop into his behind were best known to Baba. Once we disembarked at conversations with his clients and friends. Baba used to lament to Sealdah Station, Baba hired a horse carriage and we started them about his entire life being full of mistakes. It was a mistake trotting along Harrison Road with our luggage. We gradually to go to Banagram, and maybe it is again a mistake to come to reached the periphery of the city, but the journey did not end. Howrah, because Howrah is no good either. Why? What is the Then we started crossing the river onto the other side westward mistake now? Baba used to tell them, “Amulyadhan Babu came as over a bridge and carried on. a judge to Banagram. He used to love me a lot, and used to ask Initially, I thought it was a mistake on part of the coachman, me why I was not shifting to a bigger court. Then one day he got but then I got to know that we were on the way to Howrah, our transferred as a District Judge. We met at Sealdah later, and he new abode. asked me to come to Kolkata. I told him that it is not possible to The first sight was saddening. Bihari Chakraborty Lane in practise law with so many responsibilities to fulfil. He said he has Howrah is extremely congested, and on top of that our house was an opportunity to employ someone as a receiver of an estate of a at a dead end. It was easy to enter, but difficult to come out. zamindar, and if I moved fast and enrolled myself in Howrah Court, An accomplished lawyer from Banagram had come here in it would take care of ` 100 to ` 150 each month.” search of greener pastures. The entire life of Baba is full of Baba carried on, “I thought that there was no difference

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between Howrah and Kolkata, and hence, I quickly reached Chowdhury Bagan was depressing indeed. There was no Howrah Court. As it is, the job of a receiver was rare. On comparison between this place and our lush green Banagram. I enquiring, I got to know, that job was already assigned to another was not a kind of person who would question why one had to Haripada lawyer. When Judge Saheb enquired, his office let us come to Howrah leaving that place. Even the famed Howrah know that it was their mistake. They were confused between the Bridge had not come into being then. In its place was this strange Hari with the moustache and the Hari without it…” bridge across the river, which opened up from both sides to let The clean shaven Hari turned out to be a real gentleman. He medium sized steamers pass by. returned the job of the receiver, my moustached father Haripada. There is no place in this city if you do not use your brain. To the With an assured income of ` 150 a month, my father started his students in our school who were weak in English and Bengali, the new life at Howrah on the western bank of the Ganges. Though teachers used to suggest employment in one of the factories in people from a distance know Howrah as a part of Kolkata, noth- Belilious Road. No one was scared of rustication, in fact a few of ing could be farther from the truth. It took me a while too to them mustered up the courage to leave and join the factories understand that there is a heaven and hell difference between where their family members worked, and started earning. And the the two places. While visiting relatives’ place, they would joke rest would dream of the day when, if at all it comes, they would around, “Oh, Howrah? So when is the bridge opening today? be able to join some merchant office of Kolkata as a clerk. Finish off your dinner early and return fast…” Bengalis then were quite influential in the factories of this industrial town. Varying in size and capacity, some of these HOWRAH WAS ALSO NAMED ‘COOLIE factories were as huge as Burn Standard, while some others were much smaller, but all were prosperous and used to supply TOWN’. PEOPLE FROM FAR AND WIDE, their products regularly to the bigger factories. Howrah was also named ‘Coolie Town’. People from far and WITHOUT ANY KNOWLEDGE OF BENGALI, wide, without any knowledge of Bengali, used to come in huge USED TO COME IN HUGE NUMBERS AND numbers and flock to the jute mills and factories of the city. They too gradually built their own cultural coterie within the city. It was FLOCK TO THE JUTE MILLS AND FACTORIES not only the Hindi speaking community, but also fortune seekers from Andhra Pradesh and other south Indian states who came OF THE CITY. THEY TOO GRADUALLY BUILT down, who had no complaints against anyone, but only a desire THEIR OWN CULTURAL COTERIE WITHIN to live on… This city, however, is much older than Kolkata. While the latter THE CITY. FORTUNE SEEKERS FROM SOUTH is over three centuries old, the history of Howrah dates back to INDIAN STATES ALSO CAME. THEY HAD NO two centuries further. The farsighted officials of the East India Company were rarely wrong in their decisions. However, in the COMPLAINTS AGAINST ANYONE, BUT ONLY face of the sudden attack from the Marathas in the night, they chose Kolkata on the eastern bank of the Ganges as their hideout, A DESIRE TO LIVE ON… building a temporary bridge over the Ganges, thereby segregating it from the mainland of India. If they stuck to their initial plan, Uluberia of today would be Kolkata, thereby being a part of the And then we lived and grew up in Howrah for the next mainland of the country, and not requiring bridges or boats to many years… ferry across. As per planning experts, Howrah would naturally be Howrah was referred to by many names then — ‘As good as the capital of Bengal, and not this swampy Kolkata. Varanasi’, ‘Birmingham of Bengal’… Birmingham, I heard, was a It is said, that no one could correct this mistake for a long massive industrial city in England. Howrah was at par with time. Even covering up wetlands to build Salt Lake was not Birmingham then. Later it came to be known as the ‘Sheffield of fruitful, and Howrah went on to become the hub of industries, jute Bengal’, the second largest industrial city of the British Empire. mills, yards and several types of factories, as well as a place of The productivity of the citizens was indeed the reason behind residence for the less affluent. this. But still, the ill fame of the middle class was not to be gotten It was amidst these less affluent that there was a possibility of rid of so easily. The middle class Bengali lacked cooperation being successful in industries and trade. Hence, affluence seeped between the head and the hand. I still do not know for sure why into the Dey, Das, Daw, Dalui families during the World War II, who we left Banagram, the land of Pather Panchali and the Ichhamati wanted their next generation to study and become educated. River, for Howrah. Nor is it clear still, why Baba, Haripada Beside them, there was the so-called outsider middle class, who Mukhopadhyay, came to this land full of mistakes in search of his came in search of a new lease of life. Moreover, there were the fortune. Ma used to explain to us later that the scope of work as offended Mukherjee, Banerjee, Bose, Ghose, Mitter families who a lawyer decreased there as the jurisdiction was reduced. left Kolkata as a mark of their protest against the injustice and The ill fame of the city of Howrah, and narrow bye lane of misrule of Maharaja Nandakumar, and crossed the Ganges to

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settle down on the west coast in Howrah. Otherwise, why would Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, the most People complain about the narrow roads of Howrah being unfit famous Indian novelist, settle down in Ghonadanga and Shibpur in for cars. Historians reply that these roads were built much before Howrah on his return from Burma? Even before him, why did one the advent of motor cars. Kolkata is indeed lucky in this regard. of the most popular poets of Bengal start writing in Howrah itself? Moreover, we used to hear that though the children of Howrah Despite all its shortcomings, thinking of the centuries to come, study in local schools, their colleges and job places are almost why did Swami Vivekananda choose Belur to set up Belur Math always in Kolkata, where they have to walk down, or cross the with aid from a foreigner lady, rather than in the vicinity of the river by the ferry, or spend a couple of hours each day in traffic Dakshineshwar temple? Later, why did the British set up the jams along the road. Hence, the 24-hour day reduces to 22 hours renowned engineering college in Shibpur, Howrah? How is Howrah automatically, and no one keeps track of the undue expenses on the home to the largest banyan tree in the world? Why is the fuel. There is no one to worry about these; Howrah continues to Howrah Bridge the best known landmark of Kolkata? remain ill-treated. And, the Howrah lovers dream on. They take tremendous pride in Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, homeopath Bholanath Chakraborty, Dr R L Dutta, Panchanan Chatterjee, Sheetal Ghosh, HOWRAH RETAINS ITS PRIDE OF PLACE Suniti Chattopadhyay (who grew up in Howrah), Professor Hejoda DESPITE THE DETERIORATION AROUND. (Asit Bandyopadhyay), the vice chancellor of Visva Bharati University Nimai Sadhan Basu and so many more such names, all OTHERWISE, WHY WOULD SARAT CHANDRA of whom belong to Howrah. Incidentally, the name of yours CHATTOPADHYAY SETTLE DOWN IN truly too comes up in that list. It is in Howrah that I burned my midnight lamp for days on end to write my novel Chowringhee, GHONADANGA AND SHIBPUR IN HOWRAH which has been so well appreciated by my readers around the globe. And of course, this list remains incomplete without a ON HIS RETURN FROM BURMA? DESPITE mention of Shankari Prasad Basu, the foremost researcher on ALL ITS SHORTCOMINGS, THINKING OF THE Ramkrishna and Vivekananda. When have narrow and broken roads, congested lanes, shut CENTURIES TO COME, WHY DID SWAMIJI down factories and lack of affluence been able to stand in the way of love and humanity? CHOOSE BELUR TO SET UP BELUR MATH There was one regret though — lack of recognition. Here, the WITH AID FROM A FOREIGNER LADY, silent success has come very recently. Where is the capital of Bengal now? I express my heartfelt thanks to Mamata Didi. Turning RATHER THAN IN THE VICINITY OF down the centuries’ old allurement of pride and prestige of the Writers’ Building, today the name which silently makes Howrah DAKSHINESHWAR TEMPLE? proud is Nabanna. It is not a hush-hush anymore. Proving the British wrong, it is time to return to Howrah once more. The first bridge connecting Everyone mocks Howrah, but not a single soul thinks of Howrah to Kolkata was named after Swami Vivekananda, the improving the living standards of its citizens. Let Howrah remain second one after Nivedita, the third one after Rabindranath and neglected, we all are there to be concerned about the betterment the last one after Vidyasagar. It is indeed a pleasure to watch a of Kolkata. Neither has Howrah had a single minister since Shaila new Howrah being born on the western bank of the Ganges, the Mukherjee, nor does any minister of prime importance set his or new emerging city which fills the heart with wonder. her foot in Howrah unless compelled to, worrying about the For those who are still averse or shy towards this rebuilt ren- wastage of time in traffic jams. The irritated senior citizens of aissance, it is the ‘West Bank’ to them. This new city has indeed Howrah, Kasundia and Salkia have always prayed that an attracted a lot of love and attention in recent times. Maybe a day important minister should get stuck in Howrah for a couple of days will come when people would discuss this metamorphosis of — only then would they realise! There has been no one to feel for Howrah into the West Bank, and talk about the five centuries of Howrah over the last 500 years, and there would probably be none tears and perseverance which went behind this transformation of to do so over the next 500 years as well. a caterpillar into a butterfly. As a result, the inevitable happened. Those who had the Howrah Nabanna and West Bank will emerge victorious for sure. foresight moved to Kolkata given the first opportunity. Non-resi- Maybe it is time to rectify the mistake committed by an official of dent citizens of Howrah got lost in the crowds of Kolkata and the the East India Company of yesteryears, who belittled the west rest of the country forever. bank of the Ganges. But still, it is surprising to see that many accomplished people ³ Mani Shankar Mukherjee, better known by his pen name from Howrah could not forget their roots, and have felt a strange Shankar, is an acclaimed Bengali writer unspoken attachment to the city. According to them, Howrah Translation: Subhajit Bhattacharyya retains its pride of place despite the deterioration all around. Editorial assistance: Sourabh Ghosh

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LT ELEVATORS TAKINGTAKING THETHE SERVICESERVICE WAYWAY TOTO SUCCESSSUCCESS OVER THE PAST 22 YEARS, THE ELEVATOR SEGMENT OF LT GROUP OF COMPANIES HAS GAINED THE REPUTATION OF BEING THE MOST TRUSTED PARTNER

LT Group of Companies, a name synonymous with engineering excellence in vertical mobility, is now the fastest growing technology company in eastern India. The 2 lakh sqft automated manufacturing facilities in Mahestala has given it an edge over other multinationals. Over the past 22 years, LT has become one of the most crucial partners of the real estate industry. Its tested, certified elevators, multi-level car parking’s and escalators have ensured value creation at every step. LT Group is one of India’s largest indigenous elevator manufacturers, and the largest indigenous multi-level parking manufacturer. A 2 lakh sqft manufacturing setup, which is responsible for producing nearly 80% of an elevator and a car parking units in house, is where the company has started its journey. Technology-intensive assembly lines with the latest automated machinery ensure that each product is rolled out with a mission to add a certain amount of value and a sense comfort.

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LT is the only medium scale enterprise with a coun- the client trust, today it is the most preferred elevator trywide presence catering to all segments. partners of West Bengal. Engineering being its forte, it is the only Indian eleva- The year 2017 saw LT Park Smart. It had two primary tor company to be working on high rise, high speed objectives. First, was to be able to manufacture the projects. The company takes great pride in putting best quality hydraulic and mechanical parking’s. Up Indian engineering on the global map. Fuelled by its until LT started its manufacturing process, the parking drive for customer satisfaction across the value chain, industry was primarily dependent up on dealers and it believes in zero contractual work, thus achieving the channel partners. Thus, adding huge dealership costs. status of the only Indian vertical transport company to So, it set its secondary target around the same lines — believe in total in-house support, ensuring the bridge to eliminate dealers from the market. between expectations and delivery. In three years, the company has not only achieved Slowly and steadily, over the past 22 years its its primary targets but has also been fortunate to be elevator segment has gained the reputation of being associated with the biggest builders in the best of the the most trusted partner. The ideology of base level projects across the city. It is now in the process of manufacturing and zero contractual work has helped making the first ever robotic parking system manufac- turing facility which will be ready by early 2021. This THERE IS NO GREATER RESOURCE THAN OUR will not just create major value to domestic buyers but PEOPLE. IT IS AN EXCITING TIME IN THE also be a great achievement for West Bengal. VERTICAL TRANSPORT INDUSTRY AND WITH LT is also the best value proposition when it comes OUR EXTRAORDINARY COLLECTIVE TALENT, to escalators. Apart from major government buying, EXPERIENCE DEDICATION AND VISION, WE leading retail chains like Reliance, Max, Spencers, ARE SETTING BENCHMARKS Pantaloons and many more also associate with it. It did not take the people there much time to realise ARVIND GUPTA, DIRECTOR, LT Group of Companies that service is what governs this industry. Despite no contractual work policy and high manufacturing standards, regular preventive maintenance has been it achieve and sustain its goals. Today, it is the only the secret ingredient in success. It has the largest Indian company to be self manufacturing and working service network across Bengal with most pockets in a project like a G+32. Client commitment has helped being older than 10 years. Howrah and Hooghly boosts it become people’s trusted choice and the single three pockets with in-house engineers and spares largest vendor for low-income and mid-income hous- ensuring immediate response. The company has ing projects. The brand revolutionised the way goods installed and maintains more than 1,500 elevators in were being carried in the factories and now several the region, and around 3,500 across Bengal. Service is industries solely rely on it no matter where they plan a culture which should be inculcated at the beginning to expand. Step by step, winning and then maintaining for a healthy lifespan.

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NK REALTORS

Sankrail, Uluberia, Bagnan (Mumbai and connecting corridor), links , , Jamshedpur, Bhubaneswar etc within 12 hours travel. Hooghly: The district of Hooghly was once an industrial hub of West Bengal. The district offers the best opportunities for develop- ment of logistics parks and industries due to its advantage of raw materials, skilled and THINKSTOCK unskilled labour, easy finance, power, prox- imity to Kolkata and a congenial atmos- phere. Haldiram Bhujiawala, Lux Industries, TRANSFORMING Bengal Beverages, Ultratech Cement, Celebrity Breweries, IFB Agro, SAIL, Red Cow, Himadri Chemical, Anmol Stainless, STORAGE SOLUTIONS Utkarsh Industries, Mother Dairy, Hindusthan Engineering & Industries, etc WITH RISING DEMAND FOR are operational on NH 2 and Old Delhi Road. WAREHOUSING SPACES IN LOGISTICS & NH 19, through Dankuni, Singur (Delhi and Lucknow connecting corridor), connects PERIPHERAL KOLKATA, HOWRAH INDUSTRIAL HUBS Durgapur, Asansol ,, Bokaro, Ranchi AND HOOGHLY ARE EMERGING IN HOOGHLY-HOWRAH and Patna within 12 hours travel time. AS MAJOR LOGISTICS AND EXISTING Moreover, Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata (erstwhile Kolkata Port), on the INDUSTRIAL HUBS O Anmol Infra Park Hooghly river, is India’s oldest operating est Bengal, particularly Kolkata and O Aarjavv Industrial Park port and sole major riverine port. its suburbs, is fast emerging as one O Srijan Industrial Logistic W of the major warehousing and logis- Park IMPLEMENTATION OF GST tics markets in India. According to sources, O Lynq With the government’s thrust on setting up deals worth ` 500-700 crore are in different O Manas Flour Mill industrial corridors and the rollout of GST, stages of discussions, or being inked. Another O Maa Ambe Warehousing the demand for warehousing spaces has ` 4,300 crore of investments in warehousing O Saraogi Logistic Park rapidly surged in the peripheral warehous- and logistics sector is expected by 2022. O Express Industrial Park ing clusters of Kolkata in the past few years Kolkata is a major warehousing hub, serving O Sankrail Industrial Park as a result of which both Howrah and Hooghly are developing as major logistics the primary requirements of eastern India. Its O Jangalpur Jalan Complex strategic location and well-connected transport and industrial hub. O Ganesh Complex (Panchla) corridors enable it to serve the consumption O Aarna Projects needs of the nearby catchment areas. Howrah E-COMMERCE & LOGISTICS O BD Castings Warehouse and Hooghly are emerging as ideal destinations Park The penetration of digitisation has wit- for logistics and industrial hubs. nessed the blossoming of click and buy UP COMING model and triggered larger warehouse THE GROWTH DRIVERS demand. e-commerce has created multi- Locational Advantage: Delhi Road, Old Delhi O Diamond Logistics Park source channels for vendors, even small Road and Bombay Road areas are around 30-40 (Dankuni) sized ones. With intense competition in the km from the city and pass through the two dis- O Shyam Business Park e-commerce segment and emphasis on fast (Dankuni) tricts. These places are also well connected to delivery of products, the distribution chan- O PRO Space nel has been put under immense pressure the north Indian states as well as other eastern (Old Delhi Road) and north eastern ones. in all major logistics. O Narmada Warehousing Howrah is connected through railway and (Old Delhi Road) FAVOURABLE GOVT POLICY road ways with key areas for the development ESR Warehousing Park of logistics parks at Dankuni, Durgapur, Old (Uluberia) Favourable demographics, strategic loca- Delhi Road, Tajpur, Malda and Siliguri. The sector tion and improving business environment O Jalan Industrial Complex is labour-intensive with industries and factories (Bagnan & Amta) have boosted foreign investment inflows in like Skipper, Oriplast, Raunaq, Patton, ITC, O Ganesh Complex (Amta) West Bengal. To enhance its FDI potential, the state has undertaken several initiatives. Ambuja Cement, Bisk Farm, etc being operative O Venkatesh Park (Panchla) there. NH 16, through , Dhulagarh , ³ Team NK Realtors

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MERLIN GROUP

ONCE THIS PANDEMIC IS OVER, THERE WILL BE MORE CONSOLIDATION WITH FEWER DEVELOPERS AND LIMITED NUMBER OF PROJECTS; PRICES TOO WILL GO UP

SURGESURGE ININ brings happiness and appreciates in the long term. For NRIs, perhaps, it is one of the best times when home loan is cheaper and rupee as a currency is also weak against their earnings in stronger foreign currencies. Due to the com- bined effects of big disruptions like WB-Hira and GST, there had DEMAND been consolidation and reduction in new launches since the n the short run, the real estate industry witnessed slow last two years. Estimates suggest that in West Bengal, each of sales and demands due to no site visits and prevalent the years 2018 and 2019, saw projects with total supply of Ieconomic condition. However, the market has bounced about 9000 units launched against estimated annual back with a surge in demand among the middle income and absorbing capacity of 15000 units, thereby resulting reduction upper middle income groups who do not own properties. The of unsold ready inventory. normalisation post lockdown is having a positive effect in the Post-Covid, even more consolidation is likely to happen and market. Home buyers have realised that living in an owned with fewer developers and projects. Prices have already house has benefits which cannot be compared to staying in a started increasing.

PEOPLE WANT TO HAVE THEIR OWN HOMES. A GOOD DEVELOPER IS A PRIORITY THERE IS MORE REQUIREMENT FOR The customers are well informed and careful in selecting their APARTMENTS IN A COMPLEX WHERE builder. Before taking a decision, one will prudently check the CUSTOMERS CAN GET OPEN SPACE, GARDENS, track record of builder, in respect of timely delivery with prom- AND AMENITIES WHICH WILL MAKE THEIR WORK FROM HOME OR STAY FROM HOME ised quality. With prices being stable for last few years across MUCH MORE ENJOYABLE all the projects, customer’s priority is to select a good builder first and prices have become secondary. Sushil Mohta, chairman, Merlin Group of Companies Customers will prefer affordable 2BHKs or 3BHKs because these are budget-friendly options. Many customers will prefer little bigger units with an extra room or to put a couple of rented accommodation. The market has definitely picked up study table for WFH and also online classes of children. Home much sooner than was expected, and the demand for mid finance requirements will grow as even cash rich customers segment and affordable housing will be massive. will rather opt for a home loan to buy a home to get income Residential real estate would see a huge growth as with tax benefit. For bigger families staying in comparatively small- interest rate at the lowest level, buying a property would be er units, they will want either to upgrade to a bigger unit or seen as an investment with the highest ROI. Addressing fresh make nuclear families. The demand for 1 BHK flats will be low. requirement with new design elements induced in new proj- 3BHKs will score as they provide ample space for social dis- ects is the need of the hour for the issues faced during the tancing, work/ study from home options and quarantine provi- lockdown. After staying at homes, witnessing the erosion in sions if required. The prices in Bengal have not increased since valuations in the stock market, bonds, lower rate of fixed the three to four years, whereas construction cost has risen by deposits, many have realised the value of good home which 5-6% every year, leaving hardly any margins for developers.

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PANASONIC LIFE BOND WITH THE BEST PANASONIC LIFE SOLUTIONS INDIA STANDS OUT WITH ITS OFFERING OF A WIDE RANGE OF ENERGY SAVING AND SUSTAINABLE ELECTRICAL DEVICES

company has been associated with various open protocols like KNX, Zigbee, Bluetooth, Bacnet, Modbus, DALI, etc for its massive range of product categories. The company is not only creating value additions through technologically advances products but is also progressively working towards launch- ing a new range of products. In the smart home automation category, they have two types of product series — one, which includes India’s largest range of smart doorbells, smart plugs, connected stablished in 1963, Panasonic Life water heaters and switches under the In addition to this, the company has also Solutions India (formerly Anchor ‘MirAIe’ &Vetaar platform, which will soon launched a new series of Smart Digital by EElectricals), is a wholly-owned sub- include smoke and gas sensors, motion Roma. This series enables one to control sidiary of Panasonic Corporation. It is one sensors and IP Camera for monitoring, and and operate things irrespective of one’s of the leading manufacturers of electrical second KNX – Thea IQ Home Automation location. They also have a range of new construction materials with presence Systems. Panasonic Life Solutions India is advanced automation products — Black across India. Its sales and operating profit continuously developing its range of auto- Nova, Multipurpose Switch, Smart Lighting are steadily growing and it concluded last mated solutions, products and manufac- Solutions, EV Charging, Energy financial year with net sales of nearly ` 34 tures systems in line with KNX, which is Management System, and a range of mod- billion. The company has about 35 domes- assisting residential and commercial prop- ular kitchen solutions. tic offices and 9,500 employees. erty owners to adhere to the social dis- The company’s seven manufacturing tancing norms and ensure almost near zero PRODUCTS FOR BUILDERS units at four locations in India are manufac- use of common contact points. There is also a complete range of products turing electrical appliances products, syn- from electrical building materials, appli- onymous with quality. The company offers ances, security devices to automation for a a wide spectrum of electrical solutions in builder. For this, they have developed consumer products ranging from wires & Vetaar - IOT range of products in which the cables, lighting, solar power, wiring devices, company has intelligent feather touch switchgears, infrastructure and indoor air switches that will sync with the wiring quality (IAQ). device products, intelligent plugs, sensors, and MirAie platform.The company offers a ADVANCED PRODUCTS complete range of wiring protection Panasonic Life Solutions India is constantly devices (switch gears), wires and cables, working towards making and delivering cable management system, indoor air qual- interoperable solutions for customers. The ity and lighting.

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CREDAI HOWRAH HOOGHLY MANAGING COMMITTEE 2019-2021

RAM RATAN CHAUDHARY RAJ KUMAR JAISWAL TAMAL GHOSAL JATAN PAREKH SAMARJIT MONDAL SATYEN SANGHVI chairman vice-chairman president vice-president vice-president secretary M/s Panchdeep M/s Ritesh Industries M/s TCG Projects M/s Parakh Projects M/s Mondal Construction M/s Merlin Projects Ltd Constructions Ltd Private Ltd Private Ltd Private Ltd Company Ltd

BIJAY KUMAR SINGH ALOK AGARWAL PRAMOD CHAUDHARY ASHOK KUMAR JAISWAL SANJAY KUMAR BERIWAL PRABHAT SINGH assistant secretary assistant secretary treasurer G.C.J Infraworld LLP Usha Griha Nirman Pvt Ltd Skipper Housing Pvt Ltd M/s Bcon Nirman Private M/s The Hooghly Flour Mills M/s South City Projects Limited Company Ltd (Kolkata) Ltd

NIKHIL SHAH SUBRATA MUKHERJEE RAHUL AGARWAL SURENDRA AGARWAL OM PRAKASH BHARTIA DEBAPRIYA SINHA Bajrangbali Builders Dona Construction & Projects KSS Construction Pvt Ltd KSS Construction Pvt Ltd Arti Ganga Constructions Sinha Builders Pvt Ltd Pvt. Ltd.

RITESH JAISWAL KESHAV KUMAR GUPTA ASIS MUKHERJEE KAPIL KAPOOR Shri Vinayak Land Bengal GHG Nirman Balaji Housing Administrator Owners Pvt Ltd Pvt Ltd Developers

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THE SUB-COMMITTEE

LEGAL & STATUTORY EXHIBITION MARKETING & COMMITTEE & MAGAZINE WEBSITE COMMITTEE The managing committee of COMMITTEE This committee CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly This committee, man- works towards (CHH) is in charge of all legal aged by Alok Agarwal, gathering real time Jatan Parekh and statutory compliances. Alok Agarwal Asis Mukherjee convenor Ritesh Jaiswal, Nikhil information per- This committee is headed convenor co-convenor Shah and Asis taining to the by Jatan Parakh, CA, CS and a respected (Hooghly) Ritesh Jaiswal Mukherjee addresses industry and pre- developer in the real estate industry. convenor the various challenges senting it to vari- faced by buyers while ous stakeholders. choosing their dream Managed by Ritesh GRIEVANCE CELL Ritesh Jaiswal homes. From bringing Jaiswal, with the The objective of this cell has together a variety of joint convenor Nikhil Shah support of Alok Alok Agarwal been to provide satisfactory apartments under one member Agarwal and Nikhil joint convenor solutions to the grievances umbrella to segregating them Shah, the commit- of home buyers, out of the according to different preferences, viz. location, tee also showcas- court. By virtue of the com- size, budget, etc, the role of this committee is to es the various Jatan Parekh bined efforts made by provide a seamless experience to buyers during activities undertak- member Sanjay Kr Beriwal and Jatan the selection procedure. en by CHH at Parakh to settle misunder- Nikhil Shah regular intervals. standings between builders member and customers in an amica- MEMBERSHIP DEVELOPMENT AND ble manner, CHH has been SERVICE COMMITTEE (HOOGHLY) successful in accomplishing The role of CHH is to YOUTH WING Sanjay Kr its goal of resolving all the build a strong network Beriwal At CHH, the emphasis is on suc- convenor cases undertaken so far. of builders and devel- cessful implementation/ installa- opers and to ensure tion of SWP facilities, attainment transparency in busi- of IGBC certification and promo- MEMBERSHIP DEVELOPMENT Subrata ness operations. Asis Mukherjee tion of tree plantation. Nikhil AND SERVICE COMMITTEE Subrata Mukherjee Mukherjee convenor co-convenor Shah with the support of his (HOWRAH) and Asis Mukherjee team looks into the same, along The role of CHH is to build a are committed to the cause of value addition with other CSR-related activities. strong network of builders by creating professional contacts, bringing in and developers and to new members and by fostering a strong and ensure transparency in busi- solid bond amongst the existing members. ness operations. Prabhat Prabhat Singh Singh and Debapriya Sinha convenor MEDIA CELL are committed to the cause This cell is responsible for all Nikhil Shah Surendra Agarwal of value addition by creating convenor co-convenor media liaison and coordination, professional contacts, bring- regarding the various activities ing in new members and by and collaborations undertaken fostering a strong and solid by CHH. Administered by Prabhat Debapriya Sinha bond amongst the existing Prabhat Singh Kr Singh, the cell is a very co-convenor members. convenor proactive division. Ritesh Jaiswal Alok Agarwal member member CCCM COMMITTEE This committee LABOUR WELFARE AND SKILL headed by DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE Surendra Agarwal At the Skilling and and Nikhil Shah Labour Welfare has been trying Committee, the aim is Rohan Ajitsaria Shreya Mukherjee Surendra to motivate the Nikhil Shah to train unskilled or member member Agarwal developer com- member moderately-skilled convenor munity, Resident Welfare Rahul workers to maximise Utkaarsh Agarwal Mody Associations (RWAs), the local civic bodies, convenor the output of their member etc to incorporate the laws of waste potential. Health management not by force but by choice. screening camps sponsored by members help It also conducts tree plantation drives to keep a check on their wellbeing. Rahul Agarwal Utkaarsh Mody Rahul Agarwal help reduce air pollution. and Utkaarsh Mody jointly handle the initiatives. member member

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THE YOUTH WING WINNING TOGETHER

CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly chapter is an offshoot of CREDAI Bengal. While CREDAI Bengal promotes Bengal as a significant investment des- tination, works with other CREDAI chapters to exchange best practices and helps grow the real estate sector in Eastern India, CREDAI Howrah- Hooghly focuses on the Howrah-Hooghly belt. It THE AIM OF THE endeavours to change the skyline of this region, YOUTH WING IS TO commensurate with Howrah’s status as the twin city of Kolkata. ENHANCE THE The Youth-Wing of Credai Howrah-Hooghly is CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly is the bridge of com- IMAGE OF CREDAI highly devoted to ensure Credai National’s goals munication between developers and consumers HOWRAH-HOOGHLY are taken ahead with respect to its flagship activ- in this part of the state and works at credible THROUGH A SLEW ities like Credai Clean City Movement (CCCM), relationship-building between industry and gov- OF INITIATIVES, Kalpavriksha, Skilling, Health camp, Labour wel- ernment in this belt. It also holds sessions to INFORMS fare and many more. All these movements tend enable knowledge sharing between its member to benefit society at large besides rejuvenating developers and ensures there is transparent NIKHIL SHAH Mother Nature. communication between industry and customer. The aim of CREDAI is to make the real estate industry more organised and progressive under a single umbrella by working closely with all the stakeholders involved — government represen- tatives, policy makers, investors, finance compa- nies, consumers, and real estate professionals.

³ The author is convener, Youth Wing, CREDAI Howrah-Hooghly

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ESSENCE VINAYAK RIVER LINKS BALAJI RESIDENCY GANGES SKY MERLIN WATERFRONT PROJECTS OF HOWRAH Project Name Location No of Blocks and Flats Completion Date Developer Contact Details Registration No

Essence Shibpur Blocks: 4 363 Flats: 30th June,2024 Periwal Constructions LLP Dinesh Sharma HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000502 6289229185 Vinayak River Links Bandaghat 71 Flats End 2022 Jai Vinayak 7003999494 HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000087

Balaji Residency Benaras Road 5 Blocks, 119 flats September 2021 Shree Balaji Constructions 98300 34852 HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000569

Ganges Sky Shibpur Phase I : 2 Blocks, April 2022 Kanhaiya Realtors Pvt Ltd 8017595009 HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000568 128 Flats Merlin Waterfront Shibpur 4 Towers Ready to Move Merlin Group 033 71262617 HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000066 (B + G + 12), 264 Flats Ananda Dhara 49, Laxmi Narayan, 3 Blocks, 35 Flats Ready to Move M/s Technicians Guild Pvt Ltd Tapan Kumar Banerjee HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000273 Tala Road, 9674329222

Ananya 18, College Road, 12 Flats Ready to Move M/s Technicians Guild Pvt Ltd Tapan Kumar Banerjee HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000263 Howrah 9674329222 Basudha Apartment Rajnikanta 2 Blocks, 25 Flats Ready to Move M/s Technicians Guild Pvt Ltd Tapan Kumar Banerjee HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000271 Roy Chowdhury Lane 9674329222

PROJECTS OF HOWRAH Project Name Location No of Blocks and Flats Completion Date Developer Registration No

Tathastu Golabari, Howrah 60 Flats 30.09.2024 Raj Conclave Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000833 Betor Heights Phase - II Chatterjeehatt Howrah 15 Flats 30.09.2023 Amarnath Construction HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000641

Akchat Laxmi Garden Jetia Road Howrah 89 Flats 31.05.2019 M/s Bengal GHG Developers Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000585

Laxmi - Aquaspace Shibpur, Howrah 76 Flats 30.06.2020 M/s Bengal GHG Developers Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000589

Riya Manbhari Greens Phase-II Amta Road, Howrah 99 Flats 30.09.2022 Riya Manbhari Projects LLP HIRA/P/HOW/2 019/000382

Swarna Bhoomi Amta Road, Howrah 276 Flats 30.04.2021 Belmont Enclave HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000077 Ganges Divya Phase - I Bally, Howrah 138 Flats 30.12.2022 Ganges Gardens Realtors Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000559 Domjur Pride Domjur 25 Flats 30.03.2020 Jalan Builders Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000215 Nidhivan Shibpur, Howrah 30 Flats 31.07.2020 Vasavi Infrastructure Projects Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000364 Jagannaath Villa Bally,Howrah 42 Flats 28.02.2022 T. B. Construction Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2019 /000514 Sinha's Radhika Apartment Howrah 96 Flats 31.12.2022 Skyland Merchants Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000640

PROJECTS OF HOWRAH Project Name Location No of Blocks and Flats Completion Date Developer Registration No

N.B.Griha Pravesh Bally, Howrah Residential - 32 Units 31.12.2024 N.B.Highrise HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000868 Commercial - 17 Units Suvami Apartment Liluah, Howrah 19 Flats 29.05.2024 TLB Group HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000749

Mangalmurti Enclave Liluah, Howrah 107 Flats 31.12.2023 Mangalmurti Developers PvLtd HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000733 Ankur Market Domjur, Howrah Commercial - 490 Units 31.12.2023 Ankur Nirman Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000627 Shyam Tower Belilious Road, Howrah Residential - 41Units 28.12.2023 Shree Shyam Developer HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000871 Commercial - 6 Units Regent Lake View Andul, Mouri, Howrah 121 Flats 09.09.2023 RDB Realty & Infrastructure Limited HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000206

Oxford Andul Road, Howrah 92 Flats 31.12.2022 Ever Blink Hi Rise Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000775

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PROJECTS OF HOWRAH Project Name Location No of Blocks and Flats Completion Date Developer Registration No

New Megha Tower Bagnan 45 Flats 23.12.2022 New Megha Towers HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000810

Mahadev Enclave Howrah 80 flats 06.02.2022 Mahadev Udyog HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000910 The Gulmohar Heights Howrah 23 Flats 31.12.2021 Panchmahal Projects Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/ 2020/000771

Paavan Central Golabari 40 Flats 31.07.2021 Bajaj Realcon Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000695

Amrit Tower 1 28 Flats 31.03.2021 East India Realty HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000558

Amrit Tower 2 Bally 24 Flats 30.06.2022 East India Realty HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000762

Asha Mangal Tower Shibpur 49 Flats 31.03.2021 Mangla Gauri Consultants HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000750

Joyville Howrah Tower - A1 Salap 152 Flats 30.06.2020 Joyville Shapoorji Housing Private Limited HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000165 Pinnacle Joyville Howrah Tower - A2 Salap 152 Flats 31.12.2020 Joyville Shapoorji Housing Private Limited HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000281 Crest Joyville Howrah Tower - Salap 240 Flats 30.06.2020 Joyville Shapoorji Housing Private Limited HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000164 B6 - B7 City Garden Mandirtalla Shibpur 75 Flats 31.12.2020 Paramount Apartments Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000638

Green House Apartment 5 Bally 49 Flats 31.12.2020 W B Estate Developers HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000586

Bally Imperia Bally 50 Flats 31.03.2020 BG Group HIRA/P/HOW/2018/000101

Twin Towers Golabari 109 Flats 31.03.2020 Bhawani Group HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000435

Twin Towers - II Golabari 23 Flats 31.05.2021 Bhawani Group HIRA/P/HOW/2020/001038

Rash Behari Residency Malipanchghora 8 Flats 30.09.2023 Tarak Nath Saroj HIRA/P/HOW/2020/001027

Sridham Howrah 14 Flats 31.03.2021 Maa Bhabatarini Realtor Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2020/001025

Srishti Niwas Block - C Uluberia 9 Flats 31.12.2021 Maa Bhabatarini Realtor Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000924

N B Rail View Liluah 73 Flats 09.12.2019 Sayan Biswas HIRA/P/HOW/2019/000717

CHH Members Non CHH Members Source: WB Hira Website

NEW KOLKATA SANGAM MERLIN GANGOTRI PHASE-1 UNIMARK RIVIERA VINAYAK GOLDEN ACRES GANGETICA

PROJECTS OF HOOGHLY Project Name Location No of Blocks and Flats Completion Date Developer Contact Details Registration No

New Kolkata Sangam Serampore 4 Towers & 1070 Apts. December 2024 Alcove Developers LLP Kuntal Raha HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000635 in 1st Phase 9038383464

Merlin Gangotri Phase - I Uttarpara 4 Towers G +11 31.12.2021 Merlin Group 033 7126 2617 HIRA/P/HOO/2018/000083

Unimark Rivera Uttarpara 4 Towers Dec 2020 Unimark Group 9831494000 HIRA/P/H00/2018/0000248

Vinayak Golden Acres Konnagar 8 Blocks,500 Flats 2023 Jai Vinayak Group 7003999494 HIRA/P/H00/2018/000046

Gangetica Chandannagar 2 Blocks 146 Flats Ready to Move PGE Homes LLP 9830559555

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PROJECTS OF HOOGHLY Project Name Location No of Blocks and Flats Completion Date Developer Registration No

Solaris City Serampore Phase - I Serampore 1921 Flats 16.11.2022 Eden Infrabuild Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOO/2018/000157 Solaris City Serampore - II Serampore 2412 Flats 12.10.2023 Eden Infrabuild Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOO/2018/000207 Solaris Mall Serampore Commercial Unit-53 16.11.2025 Eden Infrabuild Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOO/2018/000205 Sridhar Vihar Serampore 296 Flats 31.12.2022 Pushpalki RealtyPvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOO/2019/000578 Avilash Chandannagar 42 Flats 04.04.2022 Balaji Housing Developer HIRA/P/HOO/2020/000838 Puja Ganges Bhadreswar 288 Flats 31.03.2021 Ganges Garden Realtors Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOO/2018/000663

Urban Lakes phase 1 Serampore 560 Flats 01.04.2025 Sugam Homes HIRA/P/HOO/2020/000906

PROJECTS OF HOOGHLY

Project Name Location No of Blocks and Flats Completion Date Developer Registration No

Sunshine One Konnagar 1192 Flats 31.03.2023 SPL Estates Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000654 Pratistha Exotica Serampore 100 Flats Gangotri Builcon Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000436 Grand One Serampore 2343 Flats 31.12.2022 Bengal Shriram Hitech HIRA/P/HOO/ 2018/000005

Shyam Tower Howrah Residential - 41 & Commercial - 06 28.12.2023 Shree Shyam Developers HIRA/P/HOW/2020/000871 City Pvt. Ltd. Aurobindo Apartment Serampore 15 Flats 31.03.2022 Roychowdhury Developers HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000349 Pvt. Ltd. Om Skycity Phase - I Serampore 310 Flats 31.03.2022 Prasad Castings & Buildcon LLP HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000353 D.C.B. Complex Singur Grampanchayat 1 53 Flats 31.12.2021 Loknath Developers Pvt. Ltd HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000572 Rittika 8 Rishra 32 Flats 30.12.2021 Anumans Constructions Pvt Ltd HIRA/P/HOO/ 2020/000813 Shaonli Chandannagar 8 Flats 06.11.2021 Supreme Udyog HIRA/P/HOO/ 2020/000782 Chandana Apartment Kailash Nagar Mohalla 14 Flats 09.10.2021 Raj Kumar Mishra HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000475 Elina Tower Phase - II Chinsura 30.09.2021 Satyam Construction Pvt Ltd. HIRA/P/HOO/ 2020/000948 Matangee Abason Serampore 7 Flats 12.09.2021 Treenayani Developer HIRA/P/HOO/2020/000804 Sabuj Swapno Chandannagar 15 Flats 29.07.2021 Digital Commosales LLP HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000605 Uttarayan Chinsura 32 Flats 13.06.2021 East Hooghly Construction HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000460 North Brook City Bhadreswar 598 Flats 31.05.2021 Northbrook Jute Co. Ltd. HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000367 Elina Tower Phase - I Chinsurah 15 Flats 31.12.2020 Satyam Construction P. Ltd. HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000473 Madhuban Galaxia Uttarpara Residential - 58 & commercial - 13 30.09.2020 Krishna Infracom HIRA/P/HOO/2019/000316 South Point Chinsurah Residential - 35 & commercial - 6 30.09.2020 Supreme Consortium HIRA/P/HOO/2018/000296 Jai Hanuman Riverside Hindmotor 104 Flats 30.06.2020 Jai Hanuman Projects P. Ltd. HIRA/P/HOO/2019/000378

Arista Chandannagar 39 05.11.2020 Ithemba Developments Ltd. HIRA/P/HOO/2019/000666

Signum Parkwoods Estate Bhadreswar 212 Flats 30.04.2020 Aristo Infra Developers LLP HIRA/P/HOO/2019/000227

KRITTIKA 7 Serampore 12 Flats 31.03.2020 G S Construction HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000466

K C Das Real Estate Chinsura Residential - 15 & commercial - 3 26.08.2019 Debasish Das HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000760

Aster Shree Gardens Serampore Residential - 164 & commercial - 4 23.03.2019 Aster Vinimay P Ltd. HIRA/P/HOO/ 2019/000457

CHH Members Non CHH Members Source: W B Hira Website

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