Maharashtra Government’s project Naina expected to make housing for all a reality

There is still hope that the growth rate of the real estate sector’s golden days of 2005-2009 can be achieved. Rationalisation of taxes is the prayer of the industry. The tax collection on real estate has increased tenfold and consolidation of land prices have increased by four times in last five years. Elaborating on this, Niranjan Hiranandani, Managing Director, Hiranandani Group of Companies, said at the CII real estate summit in Mumbai that affordable and low cost housing will only be possible with rationalision on taxes.  "The Hon'ble Prime Minister has a vision of housing for all by 2022 and the industry should make its objective to releasing it. The sector for a long time has been catering to high-end demand in the market and needs to reassess its strategy with 70 per cent of the demand existing for affordable housing," he added. Further, corporate participation in the real estate market has helped increase the reputation of the industry.   When it comes to Mumbai, the development of infrastructure with Cross Harbour Bridge, metro connectivity, river project for 24 x 7 water supply and open spaces on the reclamation land are required for the industry’s growth. Talking about affordable housing in the city, the 4,000 acre of salt pan land alone can create 5 lakh units at Rs 2,000 per sq ft. The improvement of slums in Mumbai is possible with a development in the slum policy. The vision of Project Naina by the Maharashtra Government, to stretch from Panvel to Alibaug is expected to make ‘Housing for All’ a reality. The government should implement the PPP system for housing for small houses and low cost housing. Rightly pointing out, Hiranandani spoke about the long-forgotten Nariman Point to Cuffe Parade area, which was to be a garden amid tall office buildings, but that never happened.