An Article on The Hindu, Property Plus, 15th May 2004 issue

International-style housing

Chennai will soon have a taste of condominium-style living. R. Balaji reports on the proposed township in Siruseri, Old Mahabalipuram Road, involving an Indo-Singapore joint venture

Aerial view of a miniature model of the proposed housing scheme in Siruseri near Chennai. Pic. by Shaju John

THE IT corridor on Old Mahabalipuram Road will soon have a township spread over 100 acres with about 6,000 apartments, thanks to the first foreign direct investment in real estate, courtesy Singapore Realty Private Limited.

Involved in the Indo-Singapore joint venture are the Singapore-based Lee Kim Tah holdings, a listed company in the business for six decades; India International Insurance Pte Ltd, a company formed in Singapore by merging subsidiaries of four Indian general insurance companies; First Capital Insurance Co Pte Ltd; and the Indian partner, BP Ventures.

Equally important, the promoters say, is the involvement of State Government departments and agencies such as the Industry Department and the State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu (SIPCOT), which sold its land to Singapore Realty. SIPCOT has also committed to facilitating the project by expediting the paperwork.

With 6,000 two and three-bedroom apartments (1,050 sqft to 1,400 sqft) built in condominium style, the township will be self-contained, providing its inhabitants international quality facilities.

According to Singapore Realty officials, the township will give its residents a sample of the lifestyle in international quality townships. Each apartment will be part of six-12-floor high rises, a cluster of which will form a precinct. The precincts will be arranged in such a way that the residents will not be more than a 10-minute walk away from the common facilities.

The township will come up adjacent to the Siruseri Information Technology Park on Old Mahabalipuram Road. In the first phase, the promoters plan to construct about 400 apartments.

The project is aimed at filling a lacuna — the need for modern living space — in the IT corridor, the stretch of Old Mahabalipuram Road starting at Madhya Kailash in Adyar up to Siruseri.

Major information technology companies have set up shop along this road and more are coming. Official estimates indicate that at least 35,000 more professionals are likely to be employed in this area over the next few years.

So how do you go about providing the essentials for a township — water, power, drainage and approach roads — in a semi-rural setting?

The job is more than half done, according to V. Subramanian, Director, Singapore Realty.

The township is located within SIPCOT's information technology industrial estate. So electrical lines, sewerage lines and approach roads are available up to the project site. The Old Mahabalipuram Road is to be upgraded to international standards, a project that the State Government has announced.

SIPCOT has also assured the promoters that it will ensure that 3 million litres of water are available daily to the township. It has secured guarantees from the State Government for water, power supply, sewage disposal and approach roads. SIPCOT has agreed to facilitate these clearances in advance, and in-principle clearances have been obtained. The final details of the masterplan are being put in place for Department of Town and Country Planning's seal of approval, Mr. Subramanian said.

The initial masterplan for the 103-acre plot has been presented to all the government agencies such as the Municipal Administration, Town and Country Planning and the Development Commissioner. "They have reacted positively and have advised the promoters to go through with the finer details to meet local regulations."

In the last six months, the legal formalities of purchasing land from SIPCOT have been finalised.

The land has been sold on an `outright basis' to the developer, who will transfer the property to the apartment buyers. SIPCOT has been looking at creating a common maintenance agency. However, till the conclusion of the project the developer will handle the infrastructure maintenance.

The developers have planned to keep the constructed area to about 35 per cent of the total space. The rest would be for common facilities like roads and open spaces with lots of greenery. They have been discussing with the Forest Department to plant trees that will thrive in the area. The department will sell them semi-grown trees, and Singapore Realty will also set up a nursery to ensure availability of ornamentals and greenery. The arterial road across the township will be a tree-lined spine from which the other roads will branch off.

In the first phase, the developers have fixed a price of about Rs. 1,000 -1,100 a sqft. A centre for shops and restaurants and space for schools and recreation are also planned.

Once the final clearances are obtained, the company plans to accept bookings from August for the first 400 apartments. With all utilities assured, the objective is to make available a ``liveable environment'' and apartments that will be ``ready-to-occupy,'' Mr. Subramanian said.

Lee Kim Tah Holdings is part of Lee Kim Tah Enterprises, which leads a consortium holding nearly 98 per cent of the $5.75 million equity, with the Indian partner holding the rest.