In the first phase, a 24-km road would be laid from Gachibowli to Shamshabad, which is scheduled to be completed by February next year. In the second phase, a road from Shamshabad to Pedda Amberpet in one stretch and from Narsingi to Patencheru in another, in all 60 km, would be laid at an estimated cost of over Rs 2,440 crore.

Five agencies are working on this project on a build, operate and transfer basis. This is likely to be ready by 2010. The third phase would see laying of a 70-km road connecting Patencheru and Pedda Amberpert. The government would take financial assistance from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and would soon call for tenders for the project.

Speaking at a seminar on ‘Real estate sector: Opportunities and challenges in Andhra Pradesh’ organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)’s Andhra Pradesh chapter, he said 33 radial roads would also be laid at a cost of Rs 3,000-4,000 crore for better connectivity to the city. Work on four radial roads has already begun.

Huda has also identified land for setting up the digital entertainment city and will soon form a special purpose vehicle for the purpose. It is also planning a health city with participation from global players.

The government is also intent on developing townships along the Outer Ring Road. While one project has already begun at Tellapur, the other is being planned on about 800 acre at Srinagar near the international airport.

“We are trying to liberalize the norms for permission,” he said, adding the government was in favor of donning a facilitator’s role. Huda has also finalized an Ahemdabad-based consultant for preparing a growth plan for the next 20 years.

Ernst & Young partner Ajit Krishnan said increasing urbanization, rising household incomes and growth in the services sector would trigger growth in the real estate sector, particularly in the residential segment. However, real estate players are faced with challenges of higher interest rates, RBI regulatory measures, unclear titles and absence of real estate investment trusts.

The swanky Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, which has come up 30 km south of the city, is described as the new icon of this IT hub, home to many software giants. If Hyderabad IT and Consultancy (Hitec) City at the once sleepy Madhapur village placed Hyderabad on the world IT map in 1990s, the new international airport is expected to transform the city, especially the area off the highway linking Bangalore into a business hub and attract huge investments in various sectors.

Though some air passengers are complaining of the long time they take to reach the new airport (the older airport was in the heart of the city), business leaders feel the state-of-the-art and spacious facility would help Hyderabad become a world-class city. The Rs 2500 crore airport, on over 5,000 acres of land, became operational Sunday, shifting all the operations from Begumpet airport.

The new airport, with the longest runway in South East Asia and A380 compatible, can handle 12 million passengers a year in the first phase. Its ultimate capacity is 40 million passengers and one million tonnes of cargo per annum.

“With this wonderful facility, Hyderabad can now have air connectivity to all key cities in the world. The city has immense business potential. I am sure many airlines will connect it to the global destinations,” Atluri Subba Rao, chairman of the Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FAPCCI), told IANS.

“Air connectivity is the most crucial aspect for any city to grow as a major business centre. Any businessman keen to invest in a city will look for good air connectivity,” he said. Rao pointed out that the 75-year-old airport at Begumpet had no room for further expansion.

The GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL), the developers of India’s first Greenfield airport in public-private partnership, feels that Hyderabad is well positioned to become a key hub — like Dubai and Singapore. Several airlines are waiting to connect Hyderabad. The British Airways is to launch flights from Heathrow from Oct 27. There will be five flights each week on a Boeing 777 aircraft. The Gulf Air, the national carrier of Bahrain, plans daily flights from June.

Emirates and other airlines plan to increase frequency. The developers expect at least 30 per cent increase in frequencies to the Gulf, a key region considering the large number of people from Andhra Pradesh employed there. The number of passengers is expected to rise from 7 million to 8.4 million passengers in the first year of operations. This would include 2.4 million international passengers. The growth projections for the first year, however, are conservative considering that the city recorded the highest growth rate of 44 per cent as compared to other metro airports in India.

Presently, 21 airlines (11 international and 10 domestic) serve more than 35 destinations. The airport handles 250 flights a day. By the end of the current fiscal, the number is expected to go up to 300-350 flights. The airport is also expected to become a cargo hub in Southeast Asia. It is presently handling 45,000 tonnes of cargo every year and the same is expected to go up to 60,000 tonnes by 2009 and to 100,000 tonnes by 2010.

The airport has a world-class cargo terminal and cold chain infrastructure, which will boost cargo operations. DHL has announced that the new airport would be its cargo hub. “This airport will give further impetus to the development of the city. The business will grow as Hyderabad is known for its IT and biotech industry,” said Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi.

“The brand image of Kuala Lumpur went up after the new international airport was set up there. We can expect a similar situation in Hyderabad,” said Kiran K. Grandhi, managing director of GHIAL. The developers have built a five-star hotel at the airport premises and plan several commercial projects and a railway station.

The real estate prices around the airport have shot up 200 times. An aerial view shows that every inch of the prime land has been measured for the real estate projects. Work on several mega real estate projects and special economic zones have begun or will start soon. The real estate developers have taken up housing projects catering to airport employees, techies and Non-Resident Indians.

The airport is expected to act as magnet to stimulate new investment around it. FAB City, India’s first chip manufacturing facility is coming up near the airport. This cluster has investment commitments worth $7 million over the next decade. The mega infrastructure projects like world class Outer Ring Road and Elevated Expressway and the proposed Metro Rail are expected to give further impetus to this development.

According to the organizers of the seminar, it is being held in response to India’s increasing participation in the globalization of real estate. The seminar will run from June 17 to June 20, 2008.

The seminar will be in Hyderabad as it is a leading Indian city for IT, call centers, and business process outsourcing and seen a considerable commercial real estate development in the last few years.

The Malaysian company will bring USD 5 million as foreign direct investment (FDI) for its equity holding in the joint venture, which a special purpose vehicle (SPV) is called MAK Builders, at present. The venture will develop about two million sq. ft of residential space in the high rise, with sizes of 1,000 to 1,300 sq. ft and price up to Rs 5 million.

The project will be near the upcoming Shamshabad international airport. The Malaysian company will lead the project. It will bring in construction expertise, architecture and also market it.

The MAK Group, which has two main companies, MAK Projects (P) Ltd and Hotels & Resorts has acquired 15 acres for the venture. It would take about 4-5 years to complete it.

The group is also into developing hotels in major cities, including Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Nagpur, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune under the brand name `Blue Lotus`. The group in intending to invest up to Rs 6 billion to create 2,000 rooms under three and four star category hotels.

Out of the normal area of 1.42 lakh hectares, castor has been in 1.24 lakh ha during the Kharif season, which ended earlier this season.

The total castor area in Andhra Pradesh for the year is put at 2.35 lakh ha this year against 2.02 lakh ha last year. The average for last three years is 2.70 lakh ha. The state has acquired some new castor fields in districts like Kurnool; the loss in the traditional areas could not give a push to its national share of 25%.

The proposed airport project falls in Rangareddy District. Castor area has already reduced by 30-40% in the past to years here and Nalgonda district. Now, the project will force the farmers to loose the remaining area as well.

No farmer will grow castor if they would be getting a whopping Rs 1-2 crore for an acre, says Mr. Rajender Prasad Agarwal, President, AP OIL Millers’ Association.

The government has already initiated the project involving an investment of Rs 27,000 crore for development of metro rail, flyovers, roads, and drainage system.

The government is also trying to bring improvisation in water supply min the city. Hyderabad will get water for 24 hours everyday by December.

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) had constructed the flyover at a cost of Rs 11 crore, which was taken up in August 05.

The main part of the flyover was built on government land and the issue of Metro Rail alignment was also resolved.

Hyderabad real estate scenario has changed fast over a period of time. Most of the demand especially for the commercial property comes from the IT companies which prefer Hyderabad over any other cities in the country. With the entry of global players like Microsoft, Oracle, Bann Info, Satyam Computers, and many others, Hyderabad property market structure has certainly undergone a paradigm shift.

Hyderabad property rates have spiralled and in some of the prime locations they are quoted 30 to 40 per cent more. The prices which once used to be around Rs 500 per sq ft during 1991-1992, has shot up to Rs 2,000 per sq ft.

For the latest residential property rates in different parts of the city, check out the statistics given below:

Hyderabad - North Suburbs Property Rates

Hyderabad - East Suburbs Property Rates

Hyderabad - New Central Property Rates

Hyderabad - South Suburbs Property Rates

Hyderabad - West Suburbs Property Rates

** Price as per the market value in May ’07
** Property Rates are subject to change due to market vagaries and may differ by virtue of location and project, depending and facilities and other factors.

He produced fake documents and displayed the land in survey numbers 80 and 81 and named the venture as ‘Mohammedi Hills’.  Originally, it was in survey no. 82 and 84 and was a ceiling surplus land which later came under the government in the year 1971, says Bandlaguda mandal revenue officer P. Leela.

The district authorities came to know about the scandal through some sources. The officers led by a special deputy collector found the land to be divided into a number of plots, further informs Leela.

The team took possession of the land, erected boards stating that it was government’s land. Now, the fences have also been erected around the land in an order to protect it.

The authority has so far taken possession of a whopping 95 acres of land worth Rs 1,300 crore, says R.V. Chandravadan, Hyderabad district collector.