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Editor’s Note

palash_roy….and miles to go before I sleep – can’t resist myself from quoting Robert Frost on this occasion – 24 successive editions in as many months is no mean task. But by the grace of God and support from all quarters, we are happy, excited and proud to come out with our Second Anniversary special edition. On behalf of Team R&M, I express gratitude to all.

In the second year too, we tried our best to stick to the best practices of journalism and policymakers continued to chose Realty & More as the preferred platform to express their opinion.

Based on your feedback and looking at the varied news that is incorporated in our News Snippets section, we have decided to upgrade this section in the beginning of the magazine. Hope, you’ll appreciate the change!

In the past month, it seemed as if all were acting in tandem to make our anniversary issue very special -first came the decision of the Union Government to restrict the eco sensitive zone around Okhla Bird Sanctuary to 100 meters on three sides, and 1.27 kilometer on the fourth. The development came as a huge relief to all – homebuyers who can now move in their houses and start saving the rents, developers who can start giving possession and the Authority which can make its revenue kitty swell through registration fees.

Then came in the announcement of 98 cities by the Central Government which were chosen to be made smart. Though there are plenty of challenges ahead, the announcement has spread euphoria across the spectrum – the real estate and construction sector, the allied industries and, of course, the dwellers of these cities which will get a smart makeover.

Afterwards, there was the biggest development for the sector in the past month – though not something to rejoice about, but surely big enough to be carried as a cover story-the Union Government deciding not to re-promulgate the Land Ordinance, which it had earlier promulgated thrice. Of the nine amendments the Government made to the Land Act 2013, eight were taken back. Bringing in 13 Central legislations under the purview of the Act is the only change from the original Act passed by the previous UPA Government. But the 2013 Act had also mentioned about bringing in these legislations in an year’s time. So, politics emerged winner at last! Had the Government been in majority in the Rajya Sabha, this Act would under no circumstances been the same as it is now. And this was very much evident when we spoke to Union Minister for Rural Development Chaudhary Birender Singh. Though the minister in an exclusive interview to Realty & More never accepted this as a retreat, it was quite evident that he was far from happy on provisions such as the Social Impact Assessment (SIA) and Consent Clause. He was confident that state Governments led by the same parties which opposed the proposed amendments in Parliament would bring in their own legislations doing away with these provisions. The real estate sector, too, is unhappy, but not so candid in expressing its anguish.

The Second Anniversary issue also has the regular dose of info – home loan rates of different banks and housing finance companies, the new launches in some of the top cities, the property rates of some of the localities in key cities, your monthly horoscope, and anniversary special Vastu, this time on good luck!

Also on the occasion of our second anniversary, the industry biggies came forward to contribute articles on varied issues, as a birthday gift to Realty & More.

We also received a bagful of good wishes and congratulatory messages from all – bureaucrats, promoters of realty biggies, and professionals. We reproduce them in this special issue.