Spirituality and India's Real Estate Industry

[Guest guest]

Spirituality drives India's realty industry

17 March, 2008

 

Lucknow

Spirituality may seek to wean people away from

material desires but it has emerged as a major factor

driving India's $15 billion realty [real estate] industry

that is growing at 35 per cent per annum, say industry

experts.

 

Religious tourism is pushing the realty industry's growth

in destinations like Vrindavan, Mathura, Haridwar,

Ajmer, Amritsar, Tirupati and Nasik - cities on the fast

track and emerging hot spots for real estate developers.

 

" Religious towns have good growth prospects. They are

witnessing more than 45 per cent annual rise in property

prices against the average 25-35 per cent in Tier II

cities, " says Vipin Agarwal, executive director, Omaxe

Developers.

 

" Increasing demand will push growth further. More

number of people are investing in property in these

towns that attract a large number of pilgrims from India

and abroad promising inner tranquility and spiritual

bliss, " Agarwal told IANS.

 

For example, the twin cities of Vrindavan and Mathura,

some 140 km from India's national capital, have seen the

development of over a dozen townships in less than

three years with an estimated investment of Rs 15000

crore ($3.71 billion).

 

 

 

" The property rates here have jumped by a whopping

400 per cent in the past two-three years alone. Certainly,

it makes sense to invest here, " maintains Puneet

Agarwal, director of Pushpanjali Constructions.

 

Most of these religious tourism-motivated townships

also blend spiritual living with features like golf courses,

billiard rooms, tennis courts, spas, clubs and swimming

pools, with large expanses of greenery thrown in.

 

" Being associated with Krishna, Vrindavan attracts

many non-resident Indians and foreigners, apart from

the usual visitors " , says Sumit Walia, general manager

of Sree Developers, a Mathura-based real estate

developer.

 

" There is a huge demand for good housing from

foreigners. Many individuals with high net worth are

also investing in these places as post- retirement options

and their second weekend homes, " he says.

 

" There is a good pool of investors in Mathura from

Delhi and Gurgaon, who drive here over weekends to

get a taste of spirituality, adds Madhur Mittal, managing

director of Triveni Infrastructure.

 

" Certainly demand for quality housing is spiraling. "

 

It is not the local developers alone who are reaping

profits. Even Big players like API, Omaxe, Unitech and

Sahara group are coming up with their projects in these

cities.

 

Omaxe, for instance, has lined up a 440-acre integrated

township with more than 2,000 residential units on the

Jaipur-Ajmer Expressway to tap visitors to the famous

Sufi shrine of Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti.

 

Similarly, Ansal-API has forayed into this market with

two townships with their Sushant City brand - one in

Ajmer spread over 125 acres of land and the other at

Kurukshetra over 200 acres.

 

" Ajmer is a major spiritual and religious centre given the

presence of the Pushkar temple dedicated to Lord

Brahma and the dargah of Ajmer Sharif. It makes sense

to invest here, " says Kunal Bannerjee, vice president of

Ansal-API.

 

That is the reason property prices in cities and towns

like Amritsar and Ajmer have gone up by five times in

the past two years and more such townships are in the

offing.

 

Omaxe has plans in Varanasi, Allahabad, Rishikesh,

Haridwar, Vrindavan, Tirupati and Puri and Triveni

Infrastructure is looking at the temple town of Haridwar,

Shirdi, the abode of Sai Baba, and Tirupati, home to

Lord Venkateswara.

 

Unitech and Sahara also have similar plans for Varanasi,

with the former already announcing a 1,500-acre

integrated township there.

 

Some of these places, notably Haridwar and Rishikesh,

because of the weather and serene surroundings, have

also emerged as major centres for yoga, ayurveda, spas

and inner healing centres. But that is another story.

 

http://sify.com/finance/fullstory.php?id=14623582