Johnson Controls offers integrated building automation

Johnson Controls, that develops one-stop life cycle solutions for buildings, offers products and services that optimise energy use and improve comfort and security of people and assets.

According to Pramoda Karkal, VP and MD, Building Efficiency, Johnson Controls, the company is committed to creating green environments and offers customers something no other vendor can deliver - sustainable, one-stop life-cycle solutions; from HVAC&R systems including chillers, to building controls, fire and security solutions. "The Indian hotel segment is also one of the focus areas to benefit from our spread of value-added building solutions,” he added.

The company which is aiming for sustainable, energy-efficient buildings across India presented a white paper on cutting life cycle cost of buildings at the recently held Green Building Congress 2007 in Chennai. Johnson Controls has provided its support to buildings like ITC Green Centre & Wipro in Delhi to achieve their Leadership in Energy Environmental Design (LEED) certified platinum ratings in India

The integrated systems customised for hotels include intelligent fire alarm system, IFC panels with detectors distributed throughout the building ensuring early warning of fire hazards, closed circuit television (CCTV) system to monitor entrances, exits and courtyards and automatic voice evacuation system for smooth evacuation of voice messages amongst others.

"These customised and integrated systems provide a comfortable atmosphere, safe and secure environment and optimised building performance. Apart from securing the property and its occupants in the best possible manner, the system is targeted at accruing energy savings," remarks Karkal.

He stated that the best way to build a more comfortable, safe and sustainable world is to apply internationally recognised standards in the beginning, rather than retro-fitting them later.

Admin frames new rules for allotment of property in city

The UT Administration has framed new set of rules for the allotment of free hold and leasehold property in the city, on Tuesday. The new rules “Chandigarh Estate Office Rules 2007” have been formed after clubbing the two pre-existing building rules in the city.
Administration officials claim that more than 1300 litigation cases have been pending at the Estate Office due to non-payment of dues. The massive backlog resulted in the replacement of the older rules. Under earlier norms, the transfer of ownership of the party will occur only after the entire payment is made to the administration.

Under the new rules, the administration has decided that the allotment of commercial and residential properties will be done by auctions, where the interested bidders would have to deposit an earnest money of Rs 2 lakh to be eligible for participating in the auction.

The highest bidder/applicant will have to pay 25 per cent of the total bid, at the end of the auction or within 30 days of the communication from Estate Officer. The remaining 75 per cent of the bid will have to be paid within a period of 90 days from the date of the auction. On payment of 25 per cent of bid amount, both parties shall enter into an agreement to sell the property. If the allottee defaults in making the timely payment of remaining balance of 75 per cent within the stipulated time period, the 25 per cent paid by him will be forfeited and the property will be auctioned again.

Similarly, if the Administration fails to fulfill its obligations to transfer or lease the property for any reason other than the on grounds of threat to public order, security of State or change in Public policy, the Administration will be liable to pay the allottee an equivalent amount, as damages for non performance.

The letter of allotment will be only issued on receipt of full and final consideration money, in order to reduce litigation costs. The construction period for completion of a building will be three years for all categories of sites.

Source : Express India

Billions of USDs for Indian Real Estate

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ELEVEN INDIAN cities, apart from the obvious top eight, are experiencing rapid economic growth due to increasing investments across industries, according to a Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FICCI) and Ernst & Young Indian Real Estate Report. These cities include Surat, Chandigarh, Nagpur, Vadodara, Visakhapatnam, Jaipur, Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Nashik, Indore and Ludhiana.

While, the Ernst & Young City ranking indicates that cities such as New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Chennai have grown very fast and the six most developed markets in India have commenced on the path of maturity and have already started becoming highly competitive.

As per this report, Panaji, Chandigarh, Pune and Ahmedabad compete with the top six cities in terms of Quality of Life.

While cities of Gujarat dominate the Urban Governance Index, Chandigarh ranks sixth on the City Prosperity Index followed by Hyderabad and Chennai. Delhi is the obvious leader in infrastructure with Chennai and Hyderabad faring well on the Infrastructure Index. Visakhapatnam and Nagpur have ranked high on both Business Environment and Infrastructure Index.

The report further says that driven by dynamic policy interventions, free flow of cross-border capital, entry of large international players, big ticket domestic IPOs, the Indian Real Estate Sector is clocking a growth of more than 30 per cent per annum.

Based on five critical indices developed by Ernst & Young comprising City Prosperity, Urban Governance, Business Environment, Infrastructure and Quality of Life, the FICCI-Ernst & Young Report reveals that as many as 11 Indian cities apart from the obvious top eight are experiencing initial phases of rapid economic growth.

The report notes that a shift towards these cities, with medium term potential, is primarily due to the spill over demand for commercial office space and also to leverage inherent cost and labour advantages. Such an influx has driven demand for residential, commercial, social and hospitality infrastructure in a short period of time considering which developers and the investor community has evoked keen interest in the changing landscape.

As a part of this report, Ernst & Young also conducted a survey which revealed that close to 80 per cent of the respondents believe that in short to mid-term (three to five years), India as an investment destination is “Excellent” or “Very Good” vis-à-vis other Asian markets (China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand).

More than 50 per cent of the respondents believe that high growth trajectory (y-o-y growth of 25 per cent) will continue for the next two to three years, with more than 15 per cent believing that the same will last for more than five years.

All respondents believe that more than USD 5 billion will be invested in the Indian Real Estate over next three years with around 20 per cent believing that the deployment will be more than USD 20 Billion.

In terms of focus on emerging asset classes close to 65 per cent of the respondents believe that logistics and warehousing infrastructure will be their preferred asset class for investment.

According to Dr Amit Mitra, Secretary General, FICCI, “Institutionalisation and evolution of Indian real estate will get a fillip from large scale investment in infrastructure planned by the Government over the next four to five years. The report foresees Healthcare, Logistics & Warehousing, Mega Integrated Townships, Airport / Port based Business District, Mass Housing, and Education, assets and development formats emerging in the firmament of Indian Real Estate in the coming years.

Source : MeriNews

Smaller cities to fuel real estate growth

As many as 11 tier II cities in the country are emerging as growth centres that could transform the landscape of India, a report by industry body FICCI and Ernst and Young said on Monday.

The FICCI-Ernst and Young Indian Real Estate Report, 2007: Growth and New Destinations, the highlights of which were released today, reveals that besides eight metros, cities such as Surat, Chandigarh, Nagpur, Vadodara, Visakhapatnam and Jaipur are experiencing initial phase of rapid economic growth.

These cities have been rated as B++ in the E&Y India City rating. Delhi and Mumbai rank first and second respectively with A++ ratings, followed by Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkatta (with A+ rating) and Pune and Ahmedabad (A).

The realty sector in India is growing by more than 30 per cent per annum and this order of growth is shifting the focus of investors and developers to relatively smaller cities and hence there is a likelihood of such emerging cities leading the transformation of the real estate sector, the study says.

The ratings are based on five critical indices, city prosperity, urban governance, business environment, quality of life and infrastructure, encompassing 55 parameters.

Ernst and Young Partner and National Leader (Real Estate Practice) Ganesh Raj said: "An attempt has been made to rank the cities based on scientific methodology and statistical tools. The term tier I, II and II cities are loosely used".

The assessment of potential in different cities across India would assist the government, industry, developers and investors to systematically plan the inflow of investments and the development of cities, he added.

The report, which will be released on September 27 at FICCI's International Real Estate summit to be held in Mumbai, also found out that education, healthcare and medicities are the new avenues that are available for developers, Raj said.

FICCI-E&Y report also carries a survey from leading investors, which revealed that all the respondents believe that more than $5 billion would be deployed into Indian real estate over the next three years with around 20 per cent believing that the deployment would be more than $20 billion.

Almost 80 per cent of the respondents believe that in short to mid term, India as an investment destination is 'excellent' or 'very good' compared to other Asian markets like China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.

According to survey, more than 50 per cent of respondents believe that high trajectory growth would continue for next 2-3 years.

Highlighting the growth of Indian real estate sector, FICCI Secretary General Amit Mitra said, "We are going to see a major development in the future where housing industry defines the flip-flop of growth and expansion as in the US. We are moving in that direction."

Mitra also noted that due to upsurge in the real estate, new opportunities have cropped up for architects, master planners, interior designers, finance and legal professionals and vaastu consultants.

Source : The Economic Times

India property expo on September 27, 28

The India Property Exhibition 2007 entitled ‘India — destination for investment’ will be held at Al Falaj Hotel on September 27 and 28. India has begun to resurface itself as a formidable economic house and progress seems to be the name of the game with strong foreign exchange reserves, healthy GDP growth rates, rupee appreciation, corporate performances and expanding FII investments,

NRI investors looking for investment in the real estate will have an access to a first-hand information on upcoming and on-going real estate projects as a range of property options from residential apartments, plots and bungalows, to commercial properties will be on display.

India Property Exhibition will showcase some of the biggest names in the Indian real estate industry. Leading builders and housing finance institutions from the country will bring under one roof reputed names, diverse projects and the best financing options from banks so that customers can shop for their dream home with least efforts and maximum convenience.

In India’s fast-growing economy, real estate has emerged as one of the most appealing investment areas for domestic as well as foreign investors.

Apartments, independent house, bungalows, villas, farmhouse, commercial properties, beach resorts and plots will be on display. Details of banks offering housing loans will also be made available to visitors.

More than 150 projects located in New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Burdwan (West Bengal), Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Mysore, Mangalore, Hosur, Vizag, Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Ajman, Panipat, Ghaziabad, Mohali, Sonipat, Meerut, Bhathinda, Karnal, Jaipur, Lucknow, Gurgaon, Jodhpur, Kundli,Coimbatore, Trichy, Madurai, Ooty, Thirunelveli, Dindugal, Nagarkoil, Kanyakumari, Tirupur, Salem, Sathur, etc. will be showcased at the exhibition. Indus Fairs & Events (India) Pvt Ltd is organising the exhibition.

Source : Times Of Oman

Parsvnath plans 16-bln-rupee township in Chandigarh

Real estate firm Parsvnath Developers Ltd said on Thursday it plans to set up a luxury township in Chandigarh at an estimated cost of 16 billion rupees over three years.

The 123-acre project will have 3.85 million square feet of residential space, and 270,000 sq ft of commercial space. Estimated revenues will be around 41 billion rupees, it said in a statement.

Parsvnath has a 70 percent stake in the project, with the balance held by the Chandigarh Housing Board, it said.

Source : News.Yahoo

L&T chooses city for its first commercial centre in India

Construction firm Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is venturing into its first commercial project in the country here in Chandigarh. In a city where commercial space comes at a premium, the firm has proposed to set up a five star hotel, malls and business towers on 20 acres along NH-21, close to the upcoming international airport in Chandigarh.

Though the firm had undertaken a few townships and IT park project in the past, the upcoming project is a pioneer effort to move into development of commercial space. The Chandigarh project, being undertaken by one of the subsidiaries of L&T, is expected to entail an investment of over Rs 300 crore.

The firm that has made most out of the conversion policy floated by the UT Administration now has one of the largest chunks of land to be developed as commercial space in Chandigarh.

Property experts feel the company has paid a handsome price for the stretch of land that is strategically located in the city, coming up as a service sector hub. “The conversion charges alone has incurred a cost of over Rs 180 crore,” an L & T executive said.

The price of commercial properties has jacked up by 50 per cent in the last one year as more and more brands and retail chains are seeking space in the city. Out of the other 26 proposals for conversion with the UT Administration, L&T would develop half of the total 40 acre proposed under the policy, sources in the administration told Newsline. Most of the other proposals involve less than an acre that are allowed to convert into restaurants, banks, offices, hospitals and training institutes, sources said.

The UT Administration has already initiated the widening and strengthening of roads in Phase I and Phase II to smoothen the implementation of conversion policy.

Source : Express India