Chennai Metblogs » che_kaps

Scarcity of space and Spiralling Prices

che_kaps — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 05:30:39 +0000

Chennai property market is constantly in the news for the consistent upswing in prices and the ultra-premium developments that are cropping up in the city. What is typical about lot of these projects is the speed at which they are being lapped up by the buyers. All this has now resulted in an acute shortage in the availability of quality housing.

As the developed world looks to relocate some of its business processes to Chennai, the city is heading for an acute housing shortage and civic infrastructure crunch.

The residential rates in Sholinganallur, about 20 km south of Chennai, are Rs 2,000 to Rs 2,500 per sq.ft. up from Rs 800 and Rs 1,000 a sq.ft. last year. In areas like Alwarpet and Adyar, in the heart of the city, prices are about Rs 4,000 a sq.ft

Chennai’s Original Skyscraper Changes Hands

che_kaps — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 03:31:13 +0000

TIAM House on Rajaji Salai is probably the first building that strikes your eye when you exit from the Beach Railway Station. This seven-story building belonging to the Murugappa Group is located bang opposite the Railway Station. The landscape of Rajaji Salai has largely remained intact with the Burma Bazaar on one side and Dare House, HSBC, Indian Bank GPO, SBI and UTI on the opposite side. Parrys was the original business hub as most of the banks, shipping companies, law firms and stockbrokers were located in the area. A short visit to the area would clearly reveal that most of the buildings are old and the streets are narrow and congested. In recent times, Parrys has been losing its relevance as a hub of business activity because lot of the new age businesses decided to establish themselves in other parts of the city. Because of some of the abovesaid reasons, the recent sale of TIAM House comes as no surprise.

The city-based Murugappa Group, which owned the building, has sold the seven-storey structure to Jesus Calls, a missionary and welfare organisation, for an undisclosed sum.

The building on Rajaji Salai had been the headquarters of the Murugappa Group since 1958. In 2002, the group decided to sell TIAM House following a consolidation exercise, which saw surplus office space.

Originally called Khaleeli Building, it was offered to the Murugappa Group by brothers Ameen and Khaleeli.

Khaleeli Building thus became the TI Group’s in 1956 and on its site was raised the city’s first fully air-conditioned tower block, with its owners moving into it from Armenian Street in 1958.

The change of the north beach skyline, dominated by classical style structures such as the General Post Office and SBI headquarters, began then.

This dated article in The Hindu traces the history of TIAM House. It has come to light that Jesus Calls paid more than Rs. 100 Crores for this heritage building. Jesus Calls is run by DGS Dhinakaran and his son Paul Dhinakaran. They are the ones behind the Karunya Group of Educational Institutions as well. Let’s hope that the new owners don’t demolish the old structure and build a taller skyscraper in the same location.

Chennai Paddler Does India Proud

che_kaps — Sun, 26 Mar 2006 20:17:13 +0000

Chennai-boy Achanta Sharath Kamal boosted India’s medal tally in the Commonwealth Games with an impressive win the Men’s Final of the Table Tennis event. Sharath Kamal earlier played an important role in engineering India’s win in the team event. This is the first time an Indian paddler has won the singles event.

Sharath works as an Officer with the Indian Oil Corporation in Chennai. Sharath trains at YMIA in Mylapore. Sharath’s dad Srinivasa Rao and uncle Muralidhara Rao are well known coaches Table Tennis coaches in Chennai.

Mega-size townships: The new rage in Chennai

che_kaps — Sun, 26 Mar 2006 20:09:29 +0000

With property prices at an all-time high, it was quite natural to expect big name developers to announce township projects on the lines of those that exist overseas and also in some other parts of India. Given that the city centre is already crowded, let’s hope that more such townships come up on the outskirts of the city.

Call them what you will. Community living spaces or gated communities are the new buzzwords in the city.

Large land banks are being developed into townships with clubhouses, gardens, walking tracks and swimming pools, and often equipped with round-the-clock security and a CCTV connection for every apartment. These townships target the upwardly mobile, double income families who are willing to pay a premium for security and hygienic surroundings.

The latest off the block is the Rs 300 crore deal by the Ozone Group, which acquired 43 acres near Anna Nagar. The company plans to develop 5.5 million sq ft of built-up space, which includes an integrated township with over 2,000 apartments, an information technology park and a shopping mall.

One of the key constraints in making people move to these townships would be the availability of public / private transport facilities. I’m not sure whether the developers are doing something in this aspect as well.

EC acts tough, transfers Chennai Commissioner

che_kaps — Thu, 16 Mar 2006 14:06:39 +0000

The Election Commission has taken no nonsense approach in the current elections. Their recent attempts to crackdown on the cut-out menace is one example. In continuation of their poll related crackdown, the Election Commission has ordered the transfer of Chennai Police Commissioner R Nataraj on the the grounds that he spoke highly of the CM (during International Women’s Day) after the Model Code of Conduct came into force.

In the first major step aimed at ensuring free and fair Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu, the Election Commission today ordered transfer of Chennai Police Commissioner R Nataraj, on the charge of violating the model code of conduct by openly praising Chief Minister Jayalalithaa.

In an interview, Natraj had reportedly said law and order was best maintained in the state under the leadership of Chief Minister Jayalalithaa and that she was the best Chief Minister the state ever had.

The Commissioner has had a clean record so far and it is sorry to see him go.