Modi's Japan visit raises hopes for Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train

September 01-07, 2014 1
An MMR, Braj Binani Group Publication Volume 3 l Issue No 35 l September 01-07, 2014 l Price: Rs 100
Modi’s Japan visit raises high
hopes for Mumbai-Ahmedabad
bullet train project
The Indian Railways, ahead of
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit
to Japan, is intensifying efforts to
concretise the Mumbai-Ahmedabad
high speed rail corridor project amid
anticipation that a way forward may
materialize during the trip. The bullet
train is expected to run at a speed of
300 km per hour on the 534-km-long
Mumbai-Ahmedabad route.
“India and Japan are cooperating
on Western Dedicated Freight Corridor
and the proposed high speed rail
corridor between Mumbai and
Ahmedabad,”said Arunendra Kumar,
the Railway Board Chairman. When
questioned about the possibility
of any agreement on the Mumbai-
Ahmedabad high speed corridor to
be signed between India and Japan
during PM’s visit from August 30, he
declined to comment.
At present, the Japan International
Cooperation Agency (Jica) and French
railway are involved in the feasibility
study of the Rs 62,000 crore Mumbai-
Ahmedabad bullet train project.
Commenting on the progress of the
bullet train project, Kumar said, “Jica
has already submitted the preliminary
report last month and the second
report with more details is expected
anytime now. Then the third and final
report will be submitted by June 15.”
While French report will mainly
focus on business development model
of the project, Jica study will cover the
entire gamut including alignment,
scheduling, tariff, technology, traffic,
funding pattern, environment and
social impact, passenger profile,
number of stations, among others.
Jica’s first report was discussed
in detail at the Board and now we
are awaiting the next report, said
the Commodity Research Bureau
(CRB).
The Rail Budget has allocated
Rs 100 crore for the preparatory
work for the bullet train project. The
allocated fund will be utilised for skill
development in high speed train and
studies on the proposed diamond
quadrilateral project, said Kumar.
However, it seems that for most
people high speed journey between
Ahmedabad and Mumbai may appear
to be a simple ride. But in reality, it
turns out to be a highly complicated
project which will have underground
and undersea tracks. The project
which is high on the agenda of Prime
Minister Narendra Modi’s Japan visit
has many twists and turns in terms of
both finance and technology.
“We have to take many aspects
of the project. The tracks have to
travel through different areas which
differ vastly in their demography and
topography. The economics will also
play a role in selecting the route and
stoppages,” remarked Kumar.
“We have to take the train through
such areas where we should get
passengers. We have to pass through
congested cities like Surat and
Mumbai. In Surat, we cannot have
a train which will be running on
ground, so we may have to go for
underground tracks. Opposite will
be the case when we will be passing
through some areas of Mumbai where
we may have to opt for underwater
tracks. All these alignments will be
decided on the revenue and traffic we
are expecting to get,” he observed.
T h e J a p a n I n t e r n a t i o n a l
Cooperation Agency has already
submitted its first interim report
and second interim report would be
coming in November. “We will have
the final report in June 2015. Only
then, will we be able to decide the
timeline for implementing the project,”
said Kumar. “We have to see whether
the conditions of investment are
beneficial to us or not.”
The Jica is studying every aspect
of the project including technology,
alignment and finance. However, the
French Rail Company has completed
the study on financial aspect of the
project. “The report could come to us
any time,” quipped Kumar.
PM rolls out savings scheme to
fund massive infra investment
RTH ministry to
decide on projects to
expedite delivery
The Centre has empowered the
Road Transport & Highways (RTH)
Ministry to decide on the mode of
delivery and amendments in regard
to agreements with developers. “The
ministry was facing problems as
regards to timely award of contracts,
whether for BoT or PPP model. There
was a difficulty in ascertaining how
the project can be delivered. Now the
ministry has been empowered to take
a decision in this regard,” said Ravi
Shankar Prasad, Communications
& IT Minister after the Cabinet
Committee on Economic Affairs
(CCEA) meeting.
The development comes in the
wake of highways projects worth Rs
1, 80,000 crore stalled on account
of various reasons. Prasad said the
ministry will now “take a decision as
to which mode is the best for effective
delivery of road project.”
The CCEA, chaired by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, gave its
approval to the ministry of RTH to
amend the Ministry of Corporate
Affairs
(MCA) as may be required from
time to time; and to decide the
mode of delivery of projects. It said
the users of national highways from
all over the country will benefit due
to expediting of implementation of
road infrastructure projects in the
country.
This will also help uplift socio-economic
condition of the entire
nation on account of increased
connectivity with farflung areas
leading to increased economic
activity, it added. As against the
ambitious target for award of 9,500
km of road length for the financial
year 2012-13, only 1,116 km could
be awarded by the National Highways
Authority of India (NHAI).
Only 1,436 km against the target
of 4,030 km for the year 2013-14
could be awarded. The shortfall was
primarily attributable to an overall
economic slowdown resulting in lack
of availability of debt and equity in
the market and complexities in the
MCA.
According to recommendations of
the Committee, further amendments
to the MCA where necessary, and
the mode of delivery of any specific
project in case the project is found
unviable on build, operate, transfer
(BoT) (toll) and/or BoT (annuity), is
to be considered, examined and
approved by the IMG.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
rolled out the ambitious financial
inclusion scheme Jan Dhan Yojana
from the ramparts of Red Fort on
Independence Day with the objective
of reaching out to all those who have
remained beyond the folds of official
financial channels. While the idea is to
take banking to unbanked areas, the
new government has a bigger agenda
to boost financial savings.
A stark decline in household
savings has been a big headache
for policymakers, but concrete steps
that could pull them to financial sector
from gold which had gained traction
in the wake of high inflation had been
lacking. Higher financial savings are
also needed to lower interest rates and
fund massive infrastructure investment
the government has planned.
The new government identified
savings as an area needing immediate
attention. Urgency over addressing
this was seen in Finance Minister Arun
Jaitley’s maiden budget that unveiled
a whole package to revitalize savings
and adopted a two-pronged approach
to address the problem more products
and taxation.
The budget unveiled a host of
new products to address the decline
in savings rate including revival of
senior citizen pension plan called the
Varishtha Jeevan Beema Yojana. A
new savings instrument for girl child
and National Savings Certificate with
an insurance cover was announced to
rekindle interest in small savings.
The budget also announced an
increase in public provident fund annual
ceiling from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh per
annum. To further sweeten the deal,
the Finance Minister raised investment
limit under section 80C of the Income
Tax Act from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh.
The increase was long due and had
been pitched for by the Reserve Bank
of India as well as other regulators.
Additionally, to tap financial savings
in the rural areas, Jaitley relaunched
the Kisan Vikas Patra or KVP that
had been very popular with savers.

CASE STUDY September 01-07, 2014 3
Bentley BIM software for
major structural design project
Software ensures
quality data for steel
fabricators; helps save
on material costs
T h e US -ba s ed F i t zpa t r i c k
Engineering Group (FEG) specializes
in structural engineering solutions
for commercial, institutional, and
healthcare buildings. The firm was
selected by a major healthcare
provider in south-eastern United
States to be a part of an integrated
project delivery team for an $18
million rehabilitation centre.
As a long-time Bentley user and
an early adopter and advocate of
building information modeling (BIM),
FEG was committed to using their
preferred BIM applications – Bentley’s
AECOsim Building Designer and
RAM Structural System – to provide
structural design for the 65,000-sq ft,
steel-framed building.
Using Bentley’s integrated and
interoperable software enabled FEG
to not only easily meet the owner’s
requirements for a Revit deliverable,
and provide the steel fabricator with
the most accurate and complete
information possible, but also to
achieve a $28,000 savings in direct
material costs and field inspection
costs.
Accurate, complete structural
data
The rehabilitation centre was the
owner’s first foray into integrated
project del ivery, in which the
design team, contractor, and major
subcontractors were on board from
the start of the project in late 2011.
As one of two main requirements,
the owner requested a Revit model
deliverable from all design disciplines
for use in facility management,
as their previous pilot projects
had demonst r a t e d t h a t BIM
reduced changes and produced
measurable savings before and
during construction, as well as for
ongoing operations. In addition, the
owner also required FEG to share
the design model data with the
fabricator.
S h a r i n g s t r u c t u r a l mo d e l
information with downstream
members of the construction team,
including fabricators, was not new
to the FEG. However, the owner’s
requirement for a Revit deliverable
did require FEG to closely examine
the accuracy and completeness of
data exports from both applications.
A thorough internal review concluded
that AECOsim Building Designer
was clearly able to export the most
accurate and complete structural
data.
Integrated structural
modeling tools
The solution to providing both
the Revit model deliverable and
high-quality steel fabrication data,
without having to re-enter data, was
to implement Bentley’s Integrated
Structural Modeling (ISM) tools.
FEG determined that its structural
engineers could use AECOsim
Building Designer in conjunction with
Bentley’s Structural Synchronizer
and ISM Revit plug-in. Structural
Synchronizer could provide a
shared, dynamic repository for
all structural content, including
change management visualization
and revision history.
AECOsim Building Designer
could use Structural Synchronizer
to communicate with the database,
while the ISM Revit plug-in could
transfer data to Revit.
“ T h e r o b u s t f e a t u r e s o f
AECOsim Building Designer and
Bentley’s continued commitment to
interoperability have allowed Fitzpatrick
Engineering Group to move beyond
the traditional ‘beams and columns’
of BIM and set itself apart as an
industry leader while collaborating in
mixed environments,” said Douglas G
Fitzpatrick, PE, President, Fitzpatrick
Engineering Group.
“We could work in our preferred
BIM application, confident that
we would be able to send reliable
information to the fabricator and
deliver a Revit model through
electronic means without having to
manage two models separately,”
he said.
FEG started the project with two
Bentley products: RAM Structural
System, which allowed analysis and
design using a single model; and
Structural Modeler, a BIM application
that enabled engineers to easily
explore design alternatives with
flexible interdisciplinary coordination
and interoperability. When a new
release of AECOsim Bui lding
Designer became available, FEG
phased out its use of Structural
Modeler in order to leverage the
new modeling features in AECOsim
Building Designer.
Enhanced coordination
between models and plans
Using the latest version of
AECOsim Building Designer, FEG
was able to use dimension-driven
parametric modeling to create and
manipulate complex structural
assemblies. Parametric modeling
technology enabled the creation
of parametric cells for common
structural components in the project
including the proprietary SidePlate
connection and baseplates with
anchor bolts.
“Parametric cells have allowed
us to add more meaningful content
into our models and provide tighter
coordination between our models
and plans,” explained Fitzpatrick.
Parametric cells not only provide
the designers with a visual check as
they are placing the element, but also
yield benefits with plan annotations
and scheduling. Because they are
linked to the original element, any
associated data for an element
can be placed as an annotation
on the plans, and as the design
continues to evolve, the annotations
are automatically updated. Similarly,
an entire group or subset of data for
a component can be easily exported
to a spreadsheet and reformatted
into a schedule to meet corporate
standards.
FEG created parametric cells
for the SidePlate connections that
included all of the plate components
as wel l as the welds. As the
connection component was placed,
the engineer received immediate
visual feedback.
If the parameters entered were
correct, the cell would fit snugly
around the column and beams for
that condition. If column flanges
extended beyond the side plates,
or if the cover plates were not snug
to the beam flanges, the user could
take action to correct the problem
rather than dealing with an RFI during
construction.
Column base plate parametric
cells were created that included
anchor bol ts, nuts, washers,
embedment depths, and a non-plotting
clearance lug at the bottom
of the anchor bolt. If this (red) lug
was visible from the underside of the
foundations, FEG knew the footings
were too shallow or the bolts too long
for that condition, and the anchor
bolts would not have the proper
concrete cover.
Anchor bolt layouts could be
visually compared against the
column prof i le for clearances
during modeling as well. The base
plates and anchor bolt layouts were
included on the extracted foundation
plan, offering another opportunity to
ensure consistency.
The engineering team created
spread footing parametric cells to
allow them to consistently model
footing sizes, reinforcing quantities
and elevations. It also ensured
enforcement of FEG’s corporate
designs.
Beam web openings, necessary
for prope r coordi n a t ion a n d
interference detection, were created
and scheduled as well. Annotations
were placed on drawings for each of
these parametric elements, closing
the loop on accurate coordination
between the model and plans and
enforcing corporate standards for
labeling each of the elements.
T h e r i s k a s s o c i a t e d wi t h
transferring red marks the old way
was eliminated, and consistency
between FEG’s model and drawings
was ensured.
“By creating parametric content
with AECOsim Building Designer, we
were able to provide an immediate
visual confirmation of modeling
accuracy during element placement,”
Fitzpatrick said. “The user was able
to see the new content in full context
of the model and could tell if the
assigned parameters fit the current
condition. This visual confirmation
provided the first level of conformance
and error checking.”
Helps save material costs
Using RAM Structural System to
analyze the proprietary SidePlate
connection technology allowed FEG
to provide a $15,000 savings in direct
material steel costs on the project.
Although the SidePlate connection
was conceived for high-seismic
applications, it has demonstrated
savings in lower seismic regions as
well – not only in terms of direct material
costs but also in field inspection
costs. Traditional seismic connections
require continuous inspection of full
penetration welds, whereas SidePlate
connections are all fillet welds allowing
for periodic inspection and less field
testing. The inspection and testing
cost reduction was anticipated to save
an additional $13,000.
This project demonstrates that
mega-size firms working on mega-size
projects are not the only ones
using Bentley’s building applications
to solve unique challenges, work and
thrive in a mixed BIM environment,
gain sustainable drawing production
ef f iciencies, and del iver mor e
consistent drawings using the
powerful set of tools in AECOsim
Building Designer.
Bentley’s innovative products
have allowed this small firm to
surpass industry standards and set
itself apart as a leader by developing
an advanced solution to today’s BIM
workflow.
Bentley Institute Press announces
publication for structural engineers
Bentley Institute Press, publisher of
university textbooks and professional
reference works for the architectural,
engineer ing, and const ruct ion
(AEC), operations, geospatial, and
educational communities, announced
the publication of ‘Principles of
Structural Analysis – Static and
Dynamic Loads’, the second book in
a three-part series.
This compendium of information
about STAAD.Pro – a mainstay of
Bentley’s world-leading 3D structural
analysis and design engineering
software – bridges the gap between
structural engineering concepts and
their practical application to real-world
challenges.
The book is authored by Bentley
Systems technical support director
Krishnan Sathia, a structural engineer
with more than 15 years of experience
developing and applying STAAD.
Pro.
‘Principles of Structural Analysis –
Static and Dynamic Loads’ is written
for a broad spectrum of readers
pursuing an in-depth understanding
of structural information modeling
best practices. Students and early
career structural engineers will learn
how to model, analyze and design
using STAAD.Pro, while seasoned
practitioners will benefit from detailed
explanations of STAAD.Pro’s many
advanced features.
“I’ve written this book to help
students become structural engineers
and practitioners to become more
proficient and productive. For
instance, in addition to including
the fundamentals of creating
information models usingSTAAD.
Pro, I’ve provided comprehensive
descriptions of various methods for
generating data that will save even
advanced practicing engineers time
and enhance their productivity,” said
Sathia.
‘Principles of Structural Analysis –
Static and Dynamic Loads’ leverages
the collective knowledge of structural
experts and software technicians
across the world to help support the
information requirements of practicing
engineers.
By delving into the methods and
principles inherent to STAAD.Pro, it
provides a complete understanding
of the programme. In addition, it
reviews common modeling errors and
methods for avoiding or overcoming
them, enabling engineers to create
better and more accurate models
in less time. These chapters teach
engineers to verify the accuracy of their
input and results to ensure models
best reflect real-world conditions.
Other subjects covered include
static analysis of framed structures,
f i n i t e element analysis, load
generation, seismic and dynamic
analysis, steel design, and concrete
design.
Like all of the titles in the Bentley
Institute Press portfolio, ‘Principles
of Structural Analysis –Static and
Dynamic Loads’ aims to deliver
continuous learning to help readers
increase their technical know-how and
improve their workflow efficiencies.
Parametric modeling with AECOsim building
designer provided an immediate visual
feedback to ensure model accuracy

INFRASTRUCTURE September 01-07, 2014 4
Sezs to get fresh fillip
under Modi
Special Economic Zones (Sezs)
have not performed to their full
potential in the past 10 years and so
the NDA government is planning to
tweak policies to make them more
productive and viable, said Union
Minister of State for Commerce
Industry Nirmala Sitharaman.
She said that Indian firms active in
manufacturing business must get more
innovative and develop their market
research capabilities to compete with
their Chinese counterparts.
Sitharaman was in Vizag to lay
foundation stone for information
technology towers at the special
economic zone in Duvvada. The
project is part of the Centre’s initiative
to promote IT industry in tier-2 cities.
The towers will have a built-up area
of 1.09 lakh sq ft along with 30,000
sq ft of disaster data recovery area
which can be used by IT firms, Indian
or foreign, for saving their data as
backup. She said the Narendra Modi
government is planning to rework
policies to make the Sezs more
productive economically since these
trade enclaves have not performed to
their full potential in the past 10 years.
As of now, there are 564 approved
Sezs in the country, of which 388 have
been notified and 192 are operational,
she said. Investment in these Sezs
stood at more than Rs 3 lakh crore
and they provide employment to 12,
70, 000 people. Their export volume
is to the tune of nearly Rs 5 lakh crore,
the minister said.
Hinduja Group to invest
$10 b in infra projects
Hinduja Group is willing to invest
$10 billion in unfinished power plants
and infrastructure projects in India
that have been languishing as non-performing
assets with banks, to help
bring back economy on high growth
path.
Gopichand Hinduja, Co-Chairman,
Hinduja Group of Companies, is
keen that the projects that were
part-financed by state banks but
abandoned for a variety of reasons
like non-availability of fuel and now
listed as bad loans, should be quickly
completed as Indian economy picks
up under Prime Minister Narendra
Modi.
China seeks private
investments in railway sector
China has sought private
investment in its tightly controlled loss
making railway sector, as it presses
ahead with its costly high speed rail
projects at home and abroad. On an
inspection tour of the China Railway
Corporation (CRC), Chinese Premier
Li Keqiang said he wants to see more
private investment in railways as its
development will stabilize economic
growth, enhance social harmony and
help urbanization.
China has spent vast sums on
railways in recent years and changing
the way they are financed is very high
on the government’s agenda. The
fund value is expected to reach 300
T h e d i v e r s i f i e d b u s i n e s s
conglomerate feels the UK government
can encourage some of its companies
to finance and complete construction
of such projects in exchange for fast
approvals from India and the prospect
of operational power stations, roads
and bridges within two years.
Hinduja added that brownfield
projects are the easiest way to show
(fast) results and that is what the
Prime Minister is trying to show rather
than go into green field projects. He
said that Britain should seize the
opportunity of Modi’s new leadership
to make a practical demonstration of
its support.
billion yuan ($ 48.6 billion). In addition,
150 billion yuan of railway bonds will
also be issued this year, with overtures
being made to banks to encourage
them to fund railway projects.
Railways are fundamental to
China’s development and their
purpose cannot be achieved in any
other feasible way, Li said. China has
already completed 11,028 km of high
speed train network that includes
engineering marvel of construction of
rail lines on the permafrost in Tibet.
China’s high-speed rail projects
include construction of Trans-Asian
Railway Network connecting China
with Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, etc.
Gujarat to set up diamond hub
for exports
GMR Infra finalizes plan to
develop rest of IGI airport
Odisha to prepare
DPR for metro rail
services
After courting success with an
array of Special Economic Zones,
Gujarat is now proposing to set up an
only-for-exports hub for diamonds at
Surat, possibly the first of its kind in
India. “We have identified everything
(like land) and I think may be in
a month or two we will set up the
Sez,” said Gujarat Finance Minister
Saurabh Patel.
The state government is keen that
Surat should have an international
airport, the minister said, adding that
he has met the Union Civil Aviation
Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju in
this regard.
He also requested Raju for starting
direct flights to Dubai from Vadodara
and Surat, and from Ahmedabad
to London and New Jersey. An
international airport in Surat will help
to boost business as well as tourism,
he said.
GMR Infrastructure has developed
a monetization plan to develop
the remaining 184 acres of Delhi’s
Indira Gandhi International Airport
in four phases over 10 years. The
airport developer’s move to unlock
value from real estate assets comes
nearly five years after its first round
of monetization, which involved
awarding development, rights over
45 acres to create a hospitality
zone.
At present, four hotels have
started operations while others are
The Odisha government signed
an agreement for preparation of a
detailed project report (DPR) for
metro rail services between Cuttack
and Bhubaneswar. The agreement
was signed between Secundarabad-based
Balaji Railroad System Ltd
and the state’s Housing Urban
Development department.
The agency would prepare the
DPR of the mass rapid transit system
(MRTS) covering the 30 km distance
between Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
The consultant agency would get
Rs 2.52 crore for preparation of the
DPR within a period of 10 months,
As regards the Special Economic
Zone (Sez), he said that once it is set
up, the jewellery exporters would be
able to bring in diamonds and have
them processed in the notified area.
“The diamond polishers are very
keen to set up the Sez. Polished
diamonds go to Antwerp, Dubai and
in the process of being completed.
The long term plan for the remaining
land will include building office
spaces, convention districts and
cargo facilities, according to the
company’s annual report for FY14.
“With Air India joining Star
Alliance, IGIA is set to become an
international hub for passenger
traffic and cargo movement. To
maximize this potential, DIAL has
developed a commercial property
development monetization plan,
including developing office space,
said Housing Urban Development
Minister Pushpendra Singhdeo, who
was present during the signing of the
agreement.
The broad scope of work for
the agency is to prepare the DPR
covering traffic demand assessment
and system selection, including
mobility analysis, alignment study,
multimodal land-integration plan,
land acquisition details, and transit-oriented
development. The agency
would also study the economic
analysis of the project which will
assist the government in deciding
on its implementation.
other places. Diamond polishers
have the confidence in building up
the Sez and state government will
support them.” There are a total
of 18 operational Sezs or export
hubs in Gujarat, and there is no
data to suggest that there is an Sez
exclusively for diamonds.
FB districts, convention districts
and 5-star deluxe/budget hotel/
service apartments on 184 acres in
four phases,” the company said. The
Delhi International Airport (Dial) is the
GMR subsidiary that runs the airport.
GMR’s senior management
has previously said it planned to
monetize between 8-14 acres in the
current fiscal, and up to 28 acres
next year. The company’s average
realization in the previous round of
monetization in 2009 was around Rs
88 crore per acre.
LT bets on infra projects in the pipeline
Betting big on the new government’s
initiative to clear major infrastructure
projects which were stuck, engineering
major Larsen Toubro said it expects
to bag a number of construction
deals.
“We will see some new changes
only after next April as the new
government is currently focused on
clearing the low-hanging fruits. These
are those projects which had been
pending for quite some time now
and we expect them to come up for
bidding soon,” said LT Chairman
A M Naik.
He said the company is eyeing
contracts worth Rs 20,000 crore
from the Dedicated Freight Corridor
Corporation (DFCC), apart from the
2,800 mw (4x700 mw) Gorakhpur
nuclear power project in Haryana as
well as some contracts in the water
and affluent segment.
LT has already bagged orders
worth Rs 6,700 crore from the DFCC
to construct a double-track corridor
from Rewari in Haryana to Iqbalgarh
in Gujarat. Three other contracts worth
around Rs 20,000 crore are expected
to be bid out soon.

September 01-07, 2014 5
REAL ESTATE
Mumbai as global real estate hub
By 2030, Mumbai will
be the most populous
city in the world, with a
population of 33 million.
Hence, it must ensure
that housing becomes
affordable
In order to ensure a home for
every Indian by 2022, Assocham
and Naredco signed a Memorandum
of Understanding (MoU) to align
strategic efforts under the aegis of
the Ministry of Housing Urban
Poverty Alleviation of the Government
of India,
The MoU and charter were jointly
unveiled by Rana Kapoor, President,
Assocham and MD CEO, Yes Bank,
along with Sunil Mantri, President,
Naredco, at the Naredco Real Estate
Banking Conclave in the presence of
G S Sandhu, Secretary, Ministry of
Finance, GoI and S S Mundra, Deputy
Governor, the Reserve Bank of India.
Kapoor said, “The MoU will
empower both organi zat ions
to strategically align efforts by
championing knowledge initiatives
and interventions in the real estate,
housing, urban infrastructure and
construction sectors.
“I strongly believe that positioning
Mumbai as an international finance
centre on a par with global cities will
help realize the city’s tremendous
growth potential and achieve the
vision of Mumbai as an ‘Economic
Capital Region’ and hub of the Indian
economy.”
He delivered a keynote address
on the steps to be taken to establish
Mumbai as an Economic Capital
Region and emphasi zed that
development of real estate, healthcare,
urban infrastructure and other allied
sectors is essential to take the vision
forward.
While the city has relatively well
developed capital markets, the
supportive urban infrastructure is
inadequate. In recent years, the
relative attractiveness of Mumbai has
declined, with the city slipping down
to lowest ranking in the Asia-Pacific
Index for Global Financial Centres.
In a globalizing age, foreign
investors’ interest is directly linked
to modernization, skilled workforce,
cost competitiveness, connectivity,
healthcare and sophistication of
financial system. Given that Mumbai
already epitomizes some of these,
the imminent need and endeavour to
adopt a systematic change of city’s
urban and financial fabric, would not
only help to position the financial
capital as an international financial
centre, but also help overcome current
economic challenges that our nation
faces today.
An integrated plan, implemented
with a coordinated effort of the
government (both Centre and state)
and the private sector, will establish
Mumbai as an enabler and driver of
India’s next phase of robust economic
growth.
Mumbai as economic
capital, IFC
On the basis of provision of
financial services, a financial centre
can be categorized as:
• Global financial centre if it serves
clients from all over the world, for
example Singapore, London and
New York
• Regional financial centre like
Dubai
• Mumbai’s time zone forms an
ideal link between major offshore
centres in the east and west. It can
facilitate transactions on the same
day with Tokyo, Singapore, London
and New York. More importantly,
a majority of freely and mobile
high quality labour force in India
generally finds its way to Mumbai.
In addition:
• Over 90 per cent of merchant
banking transactions take place
in Mumbai
• Mumbai accounts for a significant
share in deposits mobilization (13.6
per cent) and deployment of credit
(17.3 per cent)
• Mumbai’s share in banking sector
transactions is 3/4th of the total
clearances
• Treasuries of banks corporates
generally operate from Mumbai
Master Plan
Strengthen financial regime and
governance: Improve legal system
to ensure enforcement of contracts
in a fair and timely manner is the
prerequisite of developing any
internationally acclaimed financial
hubs.
Faster resolution of financial
disputes, with a comprehensive
assessment o f the country’s
commercial law, as well as the
judiciary’s ability to deal with cases
that involve foreign parties, plays an
important role.
The way forward can be tailor-made
enclaves in and around Mumbai, on
the lines of Dubai IFC, which could be
granted the power to self-legislate on
civil and commercial areas through an
amendment in the constitution.
Simplifying the taxation structure
too holds importance to develop an
efficient financial regime. An early roll-out
of the GST and comparable tax
sops, as in other countries are key to
attracting the best hedge funds and
brokerages to Mumbai.
While there are single unified
financial regulators like FSA in UK and
Financial Stability Oversight Council in
the US, in the case of India, financial
regulation is oriented towards product
regulation.
For example, banks are regulated
by the RBI, mutual funds and equity
markets by the Sebi, etc. As the
financial sector grows in size, it would
become crucial to internalize systemic
risk posed by various financial entities
by taking on board some of the
recommendations of the FSLRC
(Financial Sector Legislative Reforms
Commission).
Create competitive financial market
structure. There is a simultaneous
need to deepen the existing financial
markets.
• Setting up a forex clearing house
based out of Mumbai and
designing it on par with
other leading clearing
systems in the world.
• Reviewing ceilings
on interest rates
a n d ma t u r i t i e s
of non- resident
foreign currency
deposits with a view
to liberalize them
prudently.
• To deepen and expand
the scope of our financial
s y s t em, a d ome s t i c
financial hub would be a first
step in a much larger scheme of
things. In this regard, encouraging
financial savings would act as the
foundation stone.
• Set up Gold Bank, an apex body
headquartered in Mumbai, which
with the support of the banking
system can effectively postpone
the immediate need for imported
gold and also help in partial
conversion of existing stock of
physical gold into standardized
form of e-gold.
This would help in diverting non-productive
physical savings (14.8
per cent of GDP in FY13) towards
productive financial savings (7.1 per
cent of GDP in FY13).
In India, the Centre and states run
a combined deficit of ~7 per cent of
GDP and finance it largely through
bonds, leaving only a small share of
effective domestic savings for private
borrowers. Therefore, there is a need
to bring-in other sources of financing
infrastructure investments.
In this context, development of the
corporate bond market, reduction in
entry barriers for financial technology,
gradually reduction in SLR, and
liberalisation of investment regulations
for insurance and pension companies
would be steps in the right direction.
This would further enhance the appeal
of Mumbai as the Economic Capital
Region.
Developing global economic
clout: Greater use of the Rupee for
trade invoicing would help contain
the Cad and hence promote India
as an exporter of capital -- another
key requisite for becoming an IFC.
For internationalization of currency,
India would have to debate about
making the Rupee fully convertible
in a progressive manner.
Urban Infrastructure: While
Mumbai has most extensive
transport networks, its infrastructure
development hasn’t kept pace with
demands of the city. It has some
excellent blueprints for development,
but execution is often delayed due to
limited land space and high density
of population.
The challenges have multiplied
as Mumbai’s vehicle population has
shot up from under 7 lakh in 1991 to
21 lakh in 2013. The BMC reportedly
has just 12,000 official parking lots for
this ocean of vehicles.
Immediate need
• Encourage people to move from
using personal vehicles to public
transport system.
• Create a single window body to
approve infrastructure projects
in the city. According to Bombay
First, 17 agencies are involved in
the city’s governance.
(L-R):Sunil Mantri, President Naredco
Chairman, Mantri Realty and RanaKapoor,
President, Assochamand MDCEO, Yes Bank
(Contd. on pg 6)

September 01-07, 2014 6
INFRASTRUCTURE
Eaton’s Led lighting
solutions at Mumbai airport’s
new terminal
Power management company
Eaton announced that more than 4.8
km – totaling nearly three miles – of the
io™ light-emitting diode (Led) lights
from its Cooper Lighting Division have
been installed in Terminal-2 (T2) of the
Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport
in Mumbai.
The io Led products are designed
for wall grazing, combining energy
efficiency with optical performance
excellence, helping the facility to earn
Leadership in Energy Environmental
Design (Leed) Gold Certification.
“Our new terminal will not only be
a high-traffic destination for travelers,
but also a unique architectural design
area packed full of energy-efficient
products like the io Led fixtures,”
said Saurabh Singh, Assistant Vice
President -- contracts at GVK --
Mumbai International Airport Pvt Ltd.
Mumbai’s international airport
recently opened the new T2 terminal
which will see more than 40 million
visi tors annual ly and features
decorated carpets, an art museum and
bold designs. The io Led luminaire,
which was specifically designed for
wall grazing applications, was chosen
after rigorous competitive mock-ups.
The lighting design challenge was
to uniformly light a 6 meter high by 4.8
km long wall so that when a stainless
steel decorative perforated panel was
installed in front of the wall, the impact
of the silhouetted stainless steel was
visually powerful.
Given the enormous scale of this
wall, achieving the visual affect while
meeting the Leed Gold power density
restrictions was a challenge. During
the mock-up trials, solutions from
the io product line only were able to
uniformly light the wall from floor to
ceiling while providing ideal optical
efficiency. The io line™ series 2.0
product was the best solution to meet
the aesthetic and energy-efficient
design challenges.
“Our award-winning Led io line
series 2.0 is a perfect fit for this modern
building, providing an ideal blend of
energy efficiency and performance
to help illuminate the architectural
elements of this impressive terminal,”
said Mark Eubanks, President, Cooper
Lighting Division.
“The project leverages efficient
solutions to provide a specially
designed wall grazing feature that
delivers exceptional light quality
and uniformity to help enhance the
terminal’s aesthetics,” he added.
Several other features of the io
products led to their selection in
the new T2 architecture, including
the remote driver location to easily
address maintenance issues; meeting
strict testing standards; the Ingress
Protection (IP) rating of IP66 to prevent
against dust, insects, moisture and
water; and the fixture’s adjustability
to allow for precise aiming. The io
patented optical assembly delivers a
powerful 10-degree projection of light
while consuming very little energy.
Reduced power consumption and
savings is a main component of Leed
certification scoring, helping the airport
to recently achieve its Leed Gold
certification.
All the Led solutions are located in
T2’s unique perimeter perforated wall
display, the service core of the terminal
and the vitrine display.
Eaton’s Cooper Lighting Division
delivers a range of innovative and
reliable indoor and outdoor lighting
solutions, as well as controls products
specifically designed to maximize
performance, energy efficiency and
cost savings. The lighting business
serves customers in the commercial,
industrial, retail, institutional, residential,
utility and other markets.
PROJECTS UPDATE
Real estate developers feel that
a limited number of ministries in the
BJP-led Central government could
fast track project clearances. R
Chalapathu Rao, Vice President of
the National Real Estate Development
Council (Naredco), said,
“Getting no objection certificates
has always been a tough task for
builders in setting up projects. But
procedures could be fast tracked
as the number of ministries in the
Central government has been cut.”
Rao was speaking at a meeting
organized to announce the 12th
National Convention and Real Estate
Awards on September 12 and 13, to
contemplate on the issues associated
with delivering affordable housing to
all by 2022.
According to a KPMG report,
India needs up to 9 crore houses
for its population and requires an
investment of $2 trillion to suffice
the gap to achieve Modi’s aim of
Housing for All by 2022. As per the
same report in the 12th Five-Year
Plan, India lacks Rs 1.87 crore
houses in urban areas and Rs 4.3
crore units in rural areas, while
investment worth $1.5 trillion was
needed to suffice this gap.
IRB Infra bags toll
collection rights on
Mumbai-Pune e’way
IRB Infrastructure Developers
has won the bid to develop toll
collection booths on the Mumbai-
Pune expressway.
According to sources, six bidders
including IRB Infrastructure, were in
the fray for the assignment where
it has emerged as the winner. The
other five companies were Ashoka
Buildcom, ILFS, Essel Infra, Patel
Infra and Reliance Infrastructure.
The existing concessionaire for
the country’s first expressway is IRB
Infrastructure. Sources said the rate
of return for IRB Infra is likely to be
less than 2 per cent. The Maharashtra
State Road Development Corporation
(MSRDC) had invited financial bids
from the six qualified companies and
the last date for bid submissions was
yesterday.
At present, IRB Infra is in charge
of operation, maintenance and toll
collection on the expressway, which
has five toll stations -- Shedung,
Khalapur, Kusgaon, Talegaon and
Khalapur Connector. The company
had purchased toll collection rights
with an upfront payment of Rs 918
crore in 2004 and has a 15-year
concession period valid till August
8, 2019.
It also collects toll at four points
on the old Mumbai-Pune highway at
Sheelphata, Dehu Road, Shedung
and Kusgaon.
As per the sources, the winning
concession period for the current
contract is 8 years and 10 months.
The MSRDC also received sanction
from the National Highways Authority
of India (NHAI) for road-widening on
certain stretches at Nigdi, Dehu and
Panvel of the expressway.
LT bags Riyadh Metro rail project
Larsen Toubro (LT) is gearing
up to bid for the government’s
ambitious bullet train project, said
its Executive Chairman A M Naik.
“We will certainly participate in the
bidding of the bullet train project. We
are already in talks with global bullet
train manufacturers and technology
suppliers for tie-ups. We will be much
ahead than others when the project
comes for bidding. We will target that
project,” said Naik at the company’s
69 annual general meeting (AGM) in
Mumbai.
He said that LT had emerged
as the lowest price bidder for the
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s Statue of
Unity project in Gujarat, though the
contract was yet to be awarded. The
company is also expecting bigger
Curbed ministries may
fast track projects
Mumbai
Expedite implementation • of key
projects such as Coastal Roads,
Nhava-Sewri Trans Harbor Link,
Navi Mumbai International Airport.
The 22 km Trans Harbor Link will
create increased entry and exit
points for the city. Presently, there
are only 4 entry-exit points.
• Explore intra-sea transport (like
ferries).
Low-cost housing
As elucidated above, Mumbai’s
gravitational pull is its position
as financial capital of India and
a flamboyant metropolis. This
commercial relevance of the city has
been a prime driver for its real estate
industry.
With a slum population of around 50
per cent, more people live in Mumbai’s
slums than in all of Switzerland. As
per McKinsey, by 2030, Mumbai
will be the most populous city in the
world, with a population of 33 million.
Hence, affordable housing space has
a tremendous potential.
For Mumbai to become a world-class
city, it must ensure that housing
becomes more affordable, the rental
housing market is revitalized, land is
developed in an integrated manner
and housing stock is upgraded.
Specifically, there are some
following suggestions:
Rehabilitate slums and encourage
rental housing as an option for the
poorest of the poor. Government
could develop low-income homes
with nominal rent of Rs 3,000-5,000
per month.
Permit vertical growth by increasing
FSI to an average of 3-4. This will also
aid the commercial real estate market.
Developed parts of international cities
generally have an FSI of over 10.
Create special housing zones (on
the lines of those in China) where
government auctions public land on
the condition that a certain fraction
of it is developed into low-income
housing. In Gujarat which has the
largest stock of affordable housing in
India, developers are encouraged to
build affordable homes on public land
with government subsidizing part of
the building cost.
(Contd. from pg 5)
opportunities from infrastructure
projects, including metro rail.
“We have also won two major
prestigious contracts in the Middle
East, for Riyadh and Doha Metro
projects during financial year 2014,
contributing significantly to the order
inflow growth during the year. We are
participating in bidding for further
such prospects in the region,” he
added.
He said the thrust on strengthening
the rail network held good prospects
for the company’s railways business.
“We have already secured an initial
order of Rs 7,000 crore in consortium
with a Japanese company for a major
section of the Dedicated Freight
Corridor, and are bidding for more
packages, and we are expecting total
orders of Rs 20,000 crore. We are
also exploring international markets,
especially the Gulf countries,” added
Naik.
On the outlook he said that despite
the continuing slowdown, macro
environment had shown early signs
of recovery. With the dawn of a stable
government the economy would
improve gradually during this year.

September 01-07, 2014 7
INFRASTRUCTURE
Thriving elevators and escalators market
ThyssenKrupp elevators
and escalators ride the
wave of Metro and rail
boom in Asian cities
ThyssenKrupp Elevator has sold
more than 7,000 units of passenger
transportation equipment, and
services over 2,600 units related to
Metro and rail infrastructure projects
across the Asia Pacific region. The
company is poised for continued
growth in tandem with the area’s
boom in building Metro and railway
lines.
I n t h e p a s t d e c a d e , t h e
construction of Metro systems and
rail networks in the Asia Pacific
region has kept pace with the area’s
unprecedented urbanization. With
China leading the way, public rail
transportation across Asia is rising to
world-class standards as countries
including Korea, Thailand and India
focus on investing in their cities’
infrastructure.
On fast track
ThyssenKrupp is seizing this
momentum and has been on a fast
track of expanding its business
in this thriving market segment.
The company has sold passenger
transportation equipment which
includes elevators, escalators, and
moving walks to Metro and railway
projects across more than 21 Asian
cities.
“With mega as well as medium-size
cities across the Asia Pacific
region vying to const ruct rai l
systems and alleviate their cities’
t raf f ic congest ion, we expect
continued growth in this dynamic
market segment,” said Andreas
Schierenbeck, CEO of ThyssenKrupp
Elevator AG.
Since elevator and escalator
access to train platforms is now
indispensable for providing commuter
convenience, ThyssenKrupp has
successfully captured a substantial
share of this rail transit market
segment.
The company is able to provide the
safest and most reliable solutions and
services designed for rail systems,
as illustrated by its 65 escalators
in stations of Beijing Metro Line 15
operating at an amazing 99.99 per
cent availability rate in 2013.
China rides high
When all metro projects approved
by the government are built, a total
of 38 Chinese cities will have at
least one rail line by the year 2020.
Currently, more than 180 Chinese
cities have one million inhabitants.
It has been estimated that by 2025
this figures will increase to over 240
so that there is huge further potential
for infrastructure projects.
ThyssenKrupp Elevator has
suppl ied approximately 1,000
transportation units across Beijing’s
metro system, which has come a
long way since subway construction
began there in 1965. The Metro
network in China’s capital city has
now grown to 17 lines, carrying over
10 million passengers on an average
weekday. During rush hour, trains run
at an impressive interval of just over
2 minutes.
escalators brings its total number of
passenger transportation units in this
southern city’s Metro network to 888.
The 137 escalators will be installed
in 16 stations along Shenzhen Metro
Line 7, which extends to 28 stations
and 30.2 km, connecting densely
populated residential communities
with urban commercial and business
districts. The installation is scheduled
for completion by December 2016.
Last year, Hong Kong’s MTR
Corporation awarded ThyssenKrupp
its second major order, to supply
74 escalators for the Shatin to
Central Link Metro line. This follows
a contract awarded two years ago
for the supply of 71 escalators and
8 moving walks at the West Kowloon
Korea – 4 million passengers
In South Korea’s capital, daily
passenger numbers in the subway
system have grown from 230,000
when the first line opened in 1974,
to the current 4 million, accounting
for about 40 per cent of Seoul’s 10
million inhabitants.
During the 1990s, Seoul embarked
on a dedicated project to expand
its subway network, resulting in
additional lines and over 160 km
(almost 100 miles) of new rail track.
ThyssenKrupp’s elevators and
escalators have gained a significant
presence in the city’s rail transport
network, with 275 units installed
along a single line – Seoul’s Metro
Line 9. The company has also
recently renewed its five-year service
contract for these units.
Elevating to new levels
By 2050, urban populations will
account for nearly 70 per cent of
the global total, meaning that there
will be a 2.5 billion increase in the
number of city inhabitants, with the
vast majority of growth expected in
Africa, South America, and Asia.
As the move to cities increases
at this rapid pace, efficient urban
p l a n n i n g a n d i n f r a s t r u c t u r e
development are key factors in
ensuring successful urbanization.
Leading global companies like
ThyssenKrupp are investing in the
development of new technologies to
contribute to the elevation of urban
mobility to new levels.
The elevat o r technology
business area brings together
the ThyssenKrupp Group’s global
activities in passenger transportation
systems. With sales of 6.2 billion euros
in fiscal 2012-2013 and customers
in 150 countries, ThyssenKrupp
Elevator is one of the world’s leading
elevator companies.
With more than 49,000 highly
skilled employees, the company
offers innovative and energy-efficient
products designed to meet
customers’ individual requirements.
The portfolio includes passenger
and freight elevators, escalators and
moving walks, passenger boarding
bridges, stair and platform lifts as
well as tailored service solutions for
all products.
Over 900 locations around the
world provide an extensive sales
and service network to guarantee
closeness to customers.
The latest order ThyssenKrupp
secured from Beijing Metro is for the
supply of 329 heavy-duty escalators
to Line 14. The company is the
exclusive escalator supplier to this
entire line, and the new installation
is scheduled for completion by the
end of 2015.
In Chongqing, an important
transport hub positioned at the
conf luence of the Jial ing and
Yangtze rivers in southwest China,
ThyssenKrupp Elevator has provided
the city‘s Metro system with about 800
units of transportation equipment.
Chongqing municipality has a
population of approximately 30 million
and a surface area comparable with
the whole of Austria. The city’s first
Metro line opened in 2004, and a
network of up to 18 lines is in the
pipeline.
The company’s recent contract to
supply the Shenzhen Metro with 137
terminus of the Express Rail line, with
a total area of over 380,000 square
meters even larger than most airport
terminals.
Thailand – 500 km of new
rails
Although Bangkok already has
an extensive public transit system
consisting of the BTS SkyTrain
network, the MRT with elevated
and underground lines, as well as a
dedicated Airport Rail Link, the city
is continuing to expand its rail transit
network to a length of approximately
500 km (more than 300 miles), in
order to alleviate its congested road
traffic. ThyssenKrupp completed
its first escalator installation for
the SkyTrain in 1999, and the Thai
capital’s rail transit operators have, to
date, ordered more than 600 units of
the company’s elevators, escalators,
moving walks, and platform lifts.

September 01-07, 2014 8
Tata Value Homes to sell
houses online
Tata Value Homes, focused on
affordable housing, has partnered with
e-commerce major Snapdeal to sell
houses through the online marketplace
model. As part of the partnership,
about 1,000 homes across projects in
cities like Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad,
Bengaluru and Chennai will be put up
for sale on Snapdeal.
Ranging from 1 BHK to 3 BHK, the
houses are priced between Rs 18-70
lakh. According to reports, one in every
two online real estate searches is to
buy property and there is a $43 billion
market opportunity here.
“They started selling homes through
their website last year in December
and have already sold over 600 units.
LT Infra Finance to buy
20.23 hectares in Lavasa
LT Infra Finance has signed an
agreement with Lavasa Corporation
to purchase 20.23 hectares of land
at Mugaon town in Lavasa City, near
Pune. The company, a subsidiary of
LT Finance Holdings, has signed an
agreement with Lavasa Corporation
for purchase of the land, with a
development potential of 5 lakh sq ft
at Mugaon.
Mugaon happens to be the second
town being developed in Lavasa City
after Dasve. LT Infra Finance proposes
to utilize this land for corporate
This partnership will help us take that to
the next level,” said A Harikesh, Senior
Vice President, Marketing Sales, Tata
Housing Development Company.
Upon possession of the house,
customers through Snapdeal will get
Rs 10,000 per month for a year as an
assured rent (whether they stay on
premises or lease it out) as part of the
deal. Customers will have to register
themselves on Snapdeal before
making a booking, which opened on
August 28. . Registered users can
book a unit for Rs 30,000 and then
our offline team takes over,” he said.
However, the booking amount is not
refundable in case the customer does
not buy the house.
purpose and potentially for back-office
requirements of LT Financial
Services, said G Krishnamurthy, LT
Infra Finance Chief Executive.
He said that Lavasa City represented
the way new cities in India would come
up and the company saw investment
in this project as an opportunity to
participate in its growth. Lavasa
comprises five self-sustaining towns
with a capacity to house a permanent
resident population of around 2.4 lakh
citizens and an estimated two million
tourists per annum.
real estate
Kolte-Patil to redevelop
6 lakh sq ft area in Mumbai
Betting big on the Mumbai’s
residential redevelopment market,
Pune-based realty player Kolte-Patil.
Developers is expecting nearly 20-
30 per cent of its revenues from this
market in the next three years.
The company has al ready
entered into agreements for three
redevelopment projects in Mumbai’s
western suburbs that have a total
area of over 6 lakh sq ft and is eyeing
a few more in areas such as Dadar-
Chembur belt, Worli, Mulund, Khar,
Bandra and Santacruz.
“With a strong vision to expand in
Mumbai, we are looking at the huge
scope available in the redevelopment
segment. This strategy has proved
to be very effective, and we are
confident that this will reap rewards
across markets,” said Group Chief
Executive Sujay Kalele.
He said the company is also in
advance stages of entering into an
agreement for a fourth redevelopment
project. However, he did not disclose
further details. He said there are
around 52,000 buildings that can
come up for redevelopment in
future.
“There are around 52,000
buildings, including societies and
tenancy structures, which can come
up for redevelopment in the next few
years. This opens a huge opportunity
for developers like us to generate
good share of our revenues from the
Mumbai market,” he said.
“Currently, nearly 90 per cent of
our revenues are generated from
our projects in Pune, and the rest
from Bengaluru and Mumbai. But we
expect the mix to change to 60-70 per
cent from Pune operations, 20-30 per
cent from Mumbai and the rest from
Bengaluru in the next three years,”
he said.
He added that the company was
also planning to expand its presence
in Delhi and Gurgaon. Kolte-Patil
has developed and constructed 48
projects, including 35 residential
complexes, 9 commercial complexes,
and four information technology
parks covering a saleable area of
over 10 million square feet across
Pune and Bengaluru.
Signs of growth in residential,
office real estate: Study
“With a stable Central government,
sops for the housing sector and other
government decisions for economic
revival seem to have changed the
home buyer’s sentiment from negative
to positive in the past three months,”
said Gulam Zia, Executive Director,
Knight Frank India.
The number of new project launches
is expected to log a growth of 5 per cent
during the second half of 2014. High
unsold inventory and poor response
received by the new projects launched
during the second half of 2013 and
first half of 2014 are expected to deter
real estate developers from launching
new projects.
According to the report the
exceptions for the above would be
Chennai and NCR markets which are
forecast to see new project launches.
Meanwhile, the office space market
continued its recovery path over the
past two years with vacancy levels
falling from 21 per cent in second half
of 2012 to less than 19 per cent in the
first half of 2014. According to Zia, for
the full year 2014 the absorption of
office space is expected to touch 36.5
million sq ft up from 33.9 million sq ft
that was absorbed in 2013.
Sotheby’s realty arm to develop its
brand in India
Sotheby’s International Realty
Affiliates LLC — a group company
of global auction house Sotheby’s
International — has signed an
exclusive agreement with Delhi-based
real estate consultancy firm RealPro to
develop its brand in India by setting up
a brokerage firm.
North India Sotheby’s International
Realty is set to start operations in New
Delhi from September 2014. Later,
it will expand to Gurgaon, Noida,
Chandigarh and Jaipur. “India is one
of the most exciting, beautiful and
fastest growing markets in the world,
with a developing luxury real estate
market,” said Philip White, President
and CEO, Sotheby’s International
Realty Affiliates LLC.
“Expansion into India was one of
our core objectives for this year,” said
MD of the Asia Pacific region for the
brand Sotheby’s International Realty
Affiliates, Paul Boldy.
“The luxury residential real estate
market in India is about to witness
expansive growth and the Sotheby’s
International Realty brand will meet
the needs of high net-worth individuals
internationally. India’s luxury residential
market is poised to grow rapidly,
supported by strong economic growth.
We are in an ideal position to lead this
growth,” said Amit Goyal, co-owner,
CEO of RealPro.
Presidency Heights
launched in in Noida
Real estate developer Presidency
Infraheights Pvt Ltd has announced
the launch of its first flagship, 100 per
cent FDI-funded project ‘Presidency
Heights’, slated to come up in the
Sector 25 on Yamuna Expressway.
It is committed to make sectorial
investment of Rs 2,000 crore in the
region. The Rs 350-crore project will be
spread over 5.5 acres of land and have
629 units with per unit size ranging
from 1,270 sq ft for 2BHK to 1,850 sq
ft for 3BHK.
The project is just a 20-minute
highway drive from Noida Expressway
and is strategically located on one of
the fastest-growing professional hubs
of India and is adjacent to the Buddh
International Circuit (BIC), 40-minute
drive from Delhi.
Away from the hustle bustle of the
city, this project has been designed
by India’s leading architect Hafeez
Contractor. The landscaping of the
project has been done by Integral
Designs, with PMC Consultant
Mahimtura Consultants being the
construction partner.

September 01-07, 2014 9
Japanese firm buys
Liebherr’s 50th LTM
11200-9.1 crane
(L-R): Masanori Kanazashi, Renate Dirr and Gerald Henle of Liebherr with Koichi Sambonsuge
of Yamagata and Christoph Kleiner of Liebherr
EQUIPMENT
bC India on firm ground
despite difficult market
time, but we are very optimistic that
a number of other companies will
register to exhibit at the fair before
it opens.”
Although the economic situation
remains tense, several of the industry’s
major manufacturers continue to
take advantage of bC India as a
presentation platform: Besides ACE,
Amann, Aquarius, Bauer, BKT, Bomag,
Herrenknecht, Kobelco and Liebherr,
the companies that have registered
for the fair also include Linnhoff,
Liugong, JLG, Potain, Puzzolana,
Sany, Schwing Stetter, Spartan, Terex,
Volvo Penta, Wirtgen and Zoomlion.
The presence of the sector for
formwork and scaffolding will be
particularly strong, and all key
players including Doka, KumKang,
Layher, Peri, Pranav and Ulma will be
represented.
The third edition of the international
trade fair for construction machinery,
building material machines, mining
machines and construction vehicles is
very well received at the international
level. There will be a total of seven
joint exhibits -- from China, Germany,
Great Britain, Italy, Korea, Spain and
the Unites States.
Palka said, “The support of our
international partners and their
commi tment demonst rate that
India is still extremely interesting for
companies from around the world. I
am convinced that the market will pick
up again and that we will be able to
offer our exhibitors and visitors a first-rate
exhibition in December.”
Now that India has formed a
new government its economy once
again looks to be characterized by
an atmosphere of guarded optimism
that is increasingly influencing
the country’s construction and
construction-machinery sector.
As a result, the upcoming Bauma
Conexpo Show – bC India, which
takes place at the India Expo Centre in
Greater Noida -Delhi from December
15 to 18, 2014, will occupy some
120,000 square meters of space—
approximately 30,000 square meters
of hall space and some 90,000 square
meters of outdoor exhibition space.
Igor Palka, CEO of the organizer,
bC Expo India, said, “We understand
that despite all the positive signs, the
Indian market is still struggling at this
Potain crosses 5,000 tower
cranes milestone in China
Manitowoc’s tower crane brand,
Potain, has built more than 5,000
tower cranes at its manufacturing plant
in Zhangjiagang, China. Malaysia-based
YTL, a leading international
construction company, purchased
the 5,001st crane and a handover
ceremony was held at the facility to
mark the occasion.
YTL bought the MCR 225 A Potain
tower crane from Inflextec Engineering,
Potain’s Malaysian dealer since
2008.
YTL bought its first Potain tower
crane in 1984. Today, the company
operates a fleet of 10 MCR 225 As and
is certain to buy more Potain cranes
in future, as Yow Chee Keong, plant
machinery manager at YTL explains.
“We’ve had a Potain tower crane in
our fleet since 1984, but we recently
invested in seven new units because
of the significant improvements that
Potain has made,” he says. “They are
extremely high performing cranes that
are easy to use and simple to erect.
We can also interchange masts and
maintenance is easy. I am certain we
will buy more Potain tower cranes in
the future.”
YTL’s Potain cranes have been
used on many major projects in
Malaysia and Indonesia. Seven of the
company’s new MCR 225 As were
purchased to work on the Fennel
Sentul project in Kuala Lumpur. The
cranes will work 16 hours a day for
the next three and a half years as
they build four 43-story towers at the
job site.
The cranes will predominantly
lift pre-cast planking and steel walls
measuring up to 40 m in length.
Three units are currently on site with
the rest due to follow in the coming
weeks. Once complete, the cranes
have already been commissioned to
build four 50-story towers at a nearby
mixed-use development.
The Zhangjiagang plant opened
in 2006. The Zhangjiagang factory
employs the latest technology and
precision machinery to produce
cranes that match Manitowoc’s global
quality standards.
Rapid growth in China meant
manufacturers had t o adapt
accordingly. Price, although important,
was no longer king. High-performance
cranes packed with technology were
in demand, and Potain was poised to
serve this need, as Jean-Noel Daguin,
senior vice president tower cranes at
Manitowoc, explains.
“We mix Chinese manufacturing
with European design to create
the highest quality tower cranes in
China,” he says. “All of our crane
structures are manufactured locally,
but state-of-the-art technology is
imported from our sister factories
in France. With increasingly tight
deadlines and demanding workloads,
contractors favour reliability over cost.
And our cranes deliver beyond their
expectation.”
Today, the 60,000 m2 plant
produces a wide range of Potain tower
cranes, which range in capacity from
2.5 t to 25 t, as well as components for
other Manitowoc crawler and Grove
mobile cranes.
China-built cranes work on projects
around the world, with more than
50 per cent of the factory’s output
shipped abroad.
Ma n i t o w o c ’ s h i s t o r y o f
manufacturing in China can be traced
back to 1984 when Potain established
a licensing agreement with three state-owned-
enterprises to build its tower
cranes. In the mid-1990s Manitowoc
set up a joint venture with the Ling Hong
Group, which became a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Potain in 2000 and was
integrated into Manitowoc a year later.
Terex Environmental Equipment
(TEE) has revealed details of the units
that it intends to showcase at this
year’s Recycling Waste Management
Exhibition (RWM 2014).
The TEE products to be displayed
at the event include TRS 550 recycling
screen and TDS 825 low-speed
shredder. It will also use the show
to provide further details of its move
away from a North American-based
distribution system towards global
strategy.
TEE’s business line director, Martin
Dummigan, said, “As part of the TEE
business development, we have
focused on expanding our distribution
and product strategy into what we
believe is a position of strength in the
current marketplace.”
“We have made, and continue
to make, significant investment in
Terex Environmental Equipment,
which includes product development,
investment in facilities globally, and
team-member resource,” he added.
The TRS 550, which features
Spaleck technology, is a two-deck,
high-performance recycling waste
screen designed and manufactured
in Germany. The TDS 825 shredder,
meanwhile, can be used for a diverse
range of tasks, including applications
within the fields of bio waste, municipal
solid waste (MSW), construction, and
demolition.
According to Dummigan, TEE has
received renewed interest from the
market of late, and the manufacturer
hopes to capitalize on this momentum
with its new products.
“Since the appointment of our
international sales director, Conor
Hegarty, we have received significant
interest in our products from the rest
of the world,” he explained.
“This is from both potential dealers
and prospective new customers.
We are delighted with our current
aggressive product development
strategy, which will see TEE taking
a truly global approach in the wood
processing, biomass, and recycling
industries.”
RWM 2014 will take place at the
National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in
Birmingham, UK, from September
16 to 18.
(L-R): Jeff Yu, Marco Zucchet and Jean Noel-Daguin from Manitowoc handover the 5,001st Potain
crane to Yow Chee Keong, Yap Hee Meng, Tan Hoe Leong and Tan Khai Beng from YTL
Hitachi to showcase 65t
truck at MENA Mining Show
Hitachi Construction Machinery
has revealed plans to showcase its
EH1100-5 rigid-frame dump truck
at the 2014 Mena Mining Show in
Dubai, UAE.
The 65-ton class monster was
released on the global market in
April 2014. As the latest version of
the EH1100, the model features an
improved operator environment,
increased serviceability, and a greater
payload, according to Hitachi.
However, despite the EH110-5’s
various enhancements, the machine
also retains a number of successful
legacy features. Like its predecessor,
the dump truck boasts long-life
NeoconE/Helium suspension strut
fluid, a robotically-welded box
section frame, and trailing-arm front
suspension.
The Middle East customers will
also be offered a choice of tier-2
engines: the MTU Series 2000 and
the Cummins QSK23. The truck’s
body capacity is 41.5m3 when
heaped.
The Mena Mining Show will take
place at Dubai World Trade Centre
from October 21 to 22, 2014.

aelr aeestt September 01-07, 2014 10
Market concept of
affordable housing
In the Indian context,
affordable housing
as a market concept
must refer to homes
for people working in
urbanized areas
Regardless of how well the Indian
economy performs or how well the job
market does, there will always be such
families in the country.
Who are these people? They are the
ones no city can do without -- they are
factory fitters and turners, construction
workers, hypermarket assistants who
bag groceries, household maids
and drivers, roadside vegetable and
newspaper vendors, ‘alteration’ tailors
and rickshaw drivers, to name just
a few.
Their skills and services are very
important to the city, but their scope
for income growth is inherently limited.
They work hard for a livelihood and to
educate their children so that they have
When we talk of affordable housing
in India, we are not talking merely
about cheap homes. If that were the
only parameter to define, affordable
housing, then houses in villages or in
utterly remote outskirts with no back
links to the main cities would qualify as
‘affordable’. Needless to say, homes
in such locations tend to be affordable
more or less by default, because of the
low land prices and the leisurely nature
of demand there.
In the Indian context, affordable
housing as a market concept must
refer to homes for people working in
urbanized areas. Thanks to our cities’
economic activity spreading steadily
outward, this does not necessarily
mean that projects offering such
homes must coexist with pricey
developments in central areas.
To put a finer point to it -- affordable
homes are needed wherever people
find jobs that pay well enough for them
to run their families, but not well enough
to pay for financial indulgences that
the middle- and upper-middle class
can afford.
Benchmark of affordability
In what price bracket should such
homes fall? The rates for genuinely
affordable homes in India should
range between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 20
lakh. It is true that every city has its
own benchmarks of affordability, but
it is also true that there are fairly large
families in every city whose combined
income does not exceed Rs 15,000-
20,000 per month.
the possibility of a better life, but they
themselves rarely -- if ever -- manage
to improve their own financial status
quo.
A necessity, no dream
The majority of these people,
collectively known as the LIG (lower
income group) segment, live on rent
in ramshackle chawls and slums. They
are at the mercy of ruthless landlords,
highly erratic water and electricity
supply, public sanitary facilities and a
very high risk of disease.
For them, owning a secure home
with decent facilities in a modern
project is more than just a dream -- it
is a necessity. Such a home is also
usually their sole source of financial
security, and the only tangible asset
that they will be able to pass on to
their children.
As a rule, what the Indian property
market has to offer to this segment of
people in most of our cities falls in the
category of concrete ‘pigeon coops’
with thin walls built from substandard
materials, no balconies, no common
facilities or amenities, almost no
security, and no play areas for children
or open spaces of any kind.
Developers of such projects cut
their costs in every possible manner
and in turn overprice the flats within
them, secure in the knowledge that
they will still sell because of the severe
dearth of affordable housing.
Innovative sourcing
Maple Shelters’ Aapla Ghar
model was specifically formulated
to put an end to this approach. By
means of innovative sourcing of well-located
plots and quality construction
materials, maximum leverage of
available government incentives and
subsidies for affordable housing and
unique project designs, it is absolutely
‘Housing for All’
meet on Sept 12
To discuss issues on the
government's scheme ‘Housing
for all by 2022’, the National
Real Es tate Development
Council (Naredco) will organize
a summit on September 12-
13 with participation from all
stakeholders.
The objective of the convention
is to prepare a roadmap and
discuss measures to raise
funding to address housing
shortage in the country.
According to the Technical
Group on Urban Housing
Shortage, the housing deficit in
the country is estimated at 18.78
million units at the beginning of
the 12th Plan. It is estimated to
rise to 30 million units by 2022 if
supply remains as per the current
trend.
possible to deliver high-grade housing
projects for the LIG segment.
These projects have everything
that is needed to give their inhabitants
a safe, wholesome, comfortable
life -- generous flat sizes, open
spaces, security, connectivity to their
places of work, healthcare, means
of entertainment and scope social
interaction.
With a significant number of such
projects already delivered on the
ground, it has been indisputably
proven that genuinely affordable
quality housing is very much possible.
The only question that remains is
whether enough developers will now
take up the clarion call so that the
supply increases sufficiently. The scale
that is required is massive if we are
to even come close to meeting every
Indian’s housing needs by 2022.
Interiors
‘Home Works’ a treat for
interior lovers
Though the styles of her designs
range from opulently verdant to sternly
bespoke, Ambala-based interior
designer Rubina Chadha offers both
contemporary and classic décor that
emphasizes crisp detail, luxurious
comfort and timeless setting.
Sachin
Agarwal
CMD, Maple Shelters
Recently, the designer launched
‘Home Works Studio’ at Ambala city.
The 2,700 sq ft, well-designed store
caters to lovers of interiors. ‘Home
Works’, the designer furniture and
interior service solution, specializes
not only in designing of decorative
accents, furniture and furnishings, but
also in providing astonishing space
concepts.
“Every individual has different
dreams, and since we’re a versatile
company, we fulfil all of them. There
is a distinctive touch to everything
that comes off the dream-assembly
line at Home Works. The collections
gives the impression of a delicate
contemporaneity which integrates
itself very strongly with classical
strength and solidity. I want luxury to be
brought to everyone,” says Chadha
Home Works Studio offers an
exclusive, yet very personal service.
The designer creates a seamless
journey from conceptualization to
execution to completion, always
aiming to exceed expectations.
An extensive collection of Home
Works furniture like bed, chest, sofa
sets, consoles, centre tables, side
tables, etc and décor accessories
like wall art, mirrors, lamp shades,
candle stands, centre pieces, and soft
furnishing like bed sheets, curtains,
cushion covers are available in the
store.

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