Builders outline initiatives for better infrastructure

Bangalore's builders have joined in the demand for a better infrastructure to serve the city.

Realising that they are a part of the problem and must be a part of the solution too, they want the government to come forward and play the role of a facilitator and include them in as much of public-private partnership as possible in developing the infrastructure.

An anticipated 10 million sq ft of construction will happen in the city this year.

This phenomenal level of activity is making roads and traffic conditions worse after they have already been subjected to severe pressure from the growth that has taken place in the last few years.

Despite this, property developers and builders are working against the clock and daunting odds to meet tough deadlines.

Seeking to turn the crisis into an opportunity, K L Mohan Rao, chairman, Builders Association of India - Karnataka Centre, has several suggestions: "What is needed is an integrated and planned approach to harness the exploding opportunities in this sector. It should be in the interest of builders and the public authorities to take the opportunity and offer good infrastructure to aid the growth of this city."

Builders claim help from the government both in their work and with the infrastructure because the say that what is happening in Bangalore is not a speculative boom but a genuine demand for living and working space. To meet this demand is to help people fulfill their aspirations and improve the quality of their lives.

Says Ravi Puravankara, chairman of Puravankara Projects, one of the leading developers in the city: "The growth is solid in Bangalore and it is not speculative in nature. The demand is real here, actually to have a place to work and live in, unlike in Mumbai where real estate is more for investment and trading. The rise is real estate prices is also stable and not like the increases we saw in 1994-95 when prices shot up dramatically."

Rao adds that a key step to making infrastructure development in urban areas self-financing is to reform property tax provisions and laws, if necessary.

This will improve the finance of urban local bodies and enable them to undertake critical infrastructure expenses. Puravankara suggests that "efforts to build satellite towns have to be taken up".