Textile major Raymond has announced its entry into the real-estate sector with Raymond Realty. It will be launching its first residential project in Thane, spread over 20 acre, to monetise the company's land —Raymond owns nearly 140 acre in the prime Thane locality, which earlier housed the industry. K Mukund Raj, CEO - Real Estate, Raymond, shares more on the company’s real-estate plans and the industry with DIKSHA JAWLE.What will be your procurement requirement in terms of construction equipment and materials for Raymond’s first upcoming real-estate project?The first phase of the project is for the development of Aspirational District, which constitutes smart two-BHK homes in 10 towers of 42 floors each, aggregating to a total of 3,000 homes. This district is being developed on a-14-acre land parcel and within this nearly 5 acre will be retained as a central green space. The construction is proposed to be outsourced to a contracting company. Accordingly, Raymond will not be undertaking any major direct procurement. Please brief us on the technology you are planning to use in construction.The residential towers are high-rise buildings of 42 floors each. To expedite construction as well as reduce dependence on labour, aluminium formwork system will be employed for construction. The entire construction will be mechanised by deploying plants and machinery such as tower cranes, hoists, placer booms, etc.What is the investment in the development of the project? Are all approvals and clearances in place? Raymond will make an estimated investment of Rs 2.50 billion for the development of its first residential project. All statutory approvals are in place and the first three towers have received RERA registration. The three-towers are targeted to be complete within 5 years.What challenges do you foresee and what is your strategy to overcome them? Like any other industry, challenges to a new entrant are obvious. Further, the huge supply of residential space in the Thane micro-market adds to the choices for the customer. However, our project, owing to its location, ecosystem and the product, is being received positively by end-customers and we expect to achieve our target business plans. What is the company’s current land bank and how do you plan to utilise it?Currently, our development plans are restricted to the 14-acre land parcel. Towards the end of the financial year, we propose to develop a premium district on a 3-acre land parcel. In addition, 3 acre will be utilised for arterial roads and infrastructure. Accordingly, our current development plan is for 20 acre. What are your views on cutting down GST rates to 5 per cent on under-construction properties? The reduction of GST rates does benefit the end-customer. However, as the input tax credit has been simultaneously withdrawn, it adds to the cost burden for developers.Where do you see the company five years down the line?Future development plans will be made after establishing and streamlining the current phases of development.