We've got Oval maidan, Cross Maidan, Azad maidan ,August Kranti Maidan ,Race course, a zoo(which BTW might soon be used for night safari) and many others. The city also has a freakin National Park for crying out loud.
Not don't forget Marine Drive,Nariman point,Chowpatty beach,Bandstand,Worli Seaface,Juhu and Dadar beach

Thanks Bombay Boy, at least somone see's sense.

Yes Mumbai has the above parks but for a growing mega city as Mumbai and with a metropolitan area of 17 million people & growing some of these parks are small for a population that size. The National Park is on the outskirts so not many people living in South Mumbai would go that far to walk their dogs or play Cricket as an example & would use the nearest park or open space. I dont know much about the National Park but isn't that more for safari's?, dont tigers and lions roam free there?

Well anyway I do think some of the Port Trust land can be used for a park perhaps not on the size of a Central Park like New York but similiar & best suited for Mumbai. Of course the land can also be used for housing and other developments that Mumbai desperately needs.

Thanks Bombay Boy, at least somone see's sense.

Yes Mumbai has the above parks but for a growing mega city as Mumbai and with a metropolitan area of 17 million people & growing some of these parks are small for a population that size. The National Park is on the outskirts so not many people living in South Mumbai would go that far to walk their dogs or play Cricket as an example & would use the nearest park or open space. I dont know much about the National Park but isn't that more for safari's?, dont tigers and lions roam free there?

Well anyway I do think some of the Port Trust land can be used for a park perhaps not on the size of a Central Park like New York but similiar & best suited for Mumbai. Of course the land can also be used for housing and other developments that Mumbai desperately needs.

lol.No national Park is not a place for people to roam around.I was just pointing out that the city has its own share of greenery.

I flipped out because you used the name Central Park.Having something of that size on this land would be ridiculous.I did say 10%should be used for open grounds and parks which would around 140 acres of land which by no means is inadequate. The 17 million people which you pointed out also need houses to stay in.Dharavi is right next to this land therefore instead of sending the slum dwellers to the salt pans out of the city and making them travel all the way to their work place in the city they can be relocated on this land. Since the infrastructure of this land would freshly built BMC should relax FSI so that we can builders would have to use lesser land to build taller skyscraper thus leaving more space for open grounds,Parks and other recreation projects.

PS:I am not against open grounds,Parks etc. but housing is the need of the hour and must solve that problem first.PEACE :)

Cov Boy - to be honest, its better to have the odd small open area scattered around - if people want wide open sap[ce, they can go outside the city into the countryside.

bombay needs as many open spaces as it can get. 10% of open spaces, if its purely used as parks is fine. but what i meant by the city getting more is not just greens. it sorely needs schools, hospitals, roads, rail links, etc. i prefer the 1/3rd formula myself. 1/3rd as open spaces including civic services, 1/3rd for low-cost housing and 1/3rd for full commercial use as per the wishes of bpt. the fsi of the open spaces can be loaded on the commercial space area, i.e. it would get double the fsi for the same area so that it does not lose out on floor space created. i dont know if you how long you have lived in bombay, but if you think the city has enough greens already you must have very low expectations. a central park of 200 acres would increase quality of life immensely for almost all of south bombay, esp the areas east of the western railway line. i would hate for bombay to lose an opportunity to really become a world-class city just so that some greedy developers can make a few hundred extra concrete towers. i have lived in bombay all my life and continue to do so, and i know the city is crying out for more open spaces. to say that we have enough is either closing your eyes or lying through your teeth

You guys should seriously consider building rooftop gardens on top of your highrises, in aqddition any any proposed new parks. That way, you'll get added greenery (for oxygen production etc) AND new real estate space.

No problems Mystic, I see your point of greenery in reference to the National Park & other areas. Perhaps using the term Central Park like New York wasn't right. I agree with Bombay Boy with the 1/3 formula of splitting the land to dual uses for housing, open spaces, hospitals etc as Mumbai has many needs. That would be the perfect compromise.

However I do think a park would be good for Mumbai as Bombay Boy pointed out, it would benefit the whole of South Mumbai for someone who lives there should & would know like Bombay Boy.

Naga Solidus - your idea is great. Some highrises do have rooftop gardens but not all. I would love to see more of this fo each highrise if it is viable.

If Bombay has 1/3 open spaces, wouldnt that severely reduce the amount of living space in the city?

Considering people are still pussy footing away from making the city go tall, considering there are f all office towers, and considering Mumbai needs to grow in size, I dont see how the island can do this.

Those same types of ppl seem to think Hyd can expand horizontally, without consideration for farmland, in a country with the same population density as Japan.

If Bombay has 1/3 open spaces, wouldnt that severely reduce the amount of living space in the city?

Considering people are still pussy footing away from making the city go tall, considering there are f all office towers, and considering Mumbai needs to grow in size, I dont see how the island can do this.

bombay does not have 1/3rd open spaces. in fact it would be less than 10% if you take out the national park. the 1/3rd formula is for bpt land, which should help correct the heavily skewed ratio of open spaces to population

going tall, lack of office towers, etc have nothing to do with restricting open spaces. they have their own reasons, mostly rent laws, fsi, etc. in fact going tall without open spaces would lead to complete disaster

Well said Bombay Boy!

Has the construction of the many highrises, Bandra-Worli sealink etc resumed after the monsoons?

Has the monsoon weakned for the projects to kick off again?

bombay does not have 1/3rd open spaces. in fact it would be less than 10% if you take out the national park. the 1/3rd formula is for bpt land, which should help correct the heavily skewed ratio of open spaces to population

going tall, lack of office towers, etc have nothing to do with restricting open spaces. they have their own reasons, mostly rent laws, fsi, etc. in fact going tall without open spaces would lead to complete disaster

That isnt really what I asked:

Im saying how can 1/3 open spaces be implimented without sacrificing tons of potential habitable land in a city that desperatly needs office space and homes, yet is unwilling to build upwards.

There is a lot of discussion nowadays about how prospective open land (mills/port etc) will be used up by real estate sharks for development.

But not many seem to discuss anything openly about the alternative that will happen to any newly opened up spaces. Of course I am basing my assumption on Mumbai's (and other Indian cities too) track record. Any open land will in all probabilty end up as a shanty town and not parks that citizens can use.

It seems that Mumbai's choice is limited between a 1000 shanties or 10 Skyscrapers with a 1000 apartments. Parks - forget it.

I like the 1/3rd formula though - that is if it can really be implemented.

Maybe they can implement it in the slum areas too. Slums occupy at least 10% of land area (if not more). The government can use 1/3rd for rehousing/LIG, 1/3 for commercial + infra + HIG housing - 1/3rd open spaces. That way 3% of land can be returned to the city as open spaces from illegal (or political vote bank legalized) squatting.

Spring Mills (Bombay Dyeing)

http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/9020/springmillsmumbaieb0.jpg

confused by the 58 levels of residential thing? Is that two towers combined?

1
http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/2889/shethadvtgrandeurzv1.jpg

2
http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/6707/shethadvtivydy3.jpg

3
http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/7136/shethadvtpolarisrn5.jpg

bombay needs as many open spaces as it can get. 10% of open spaces, if its purely used as parks is fine. but what i meant by the city getting more is not just greens. it sorely needs schools, hospitals, roads, rail links, etc. i prefer the 1/3rd formula myself. 1/3rd as open spaces including civic services, 1/3rd for low-cost housing and 1/3rd for full commercial use as per the wishes of bpt. the fsi of the open spaces can be loaded on the commercial space area, i.e. it would get double the fsi for the same area so that it does not lose out on floor space created. i dont know if you how long you have lived in bombay, but if you think the city has enough greens already you must have very low expectations. a central park of 200 acres would increase quality of life immensely for almost all of south bombay, esp the areas east of the western railway line. i would hate for bombay to lose an opportunity to really become a world-class city just so that some greedy developers can make a few hundred extra concrete towers. i have lived in bombay all my life and continue to do so, and i know the city is crying out for more open spaces. to say that we have enough is either closing your eyes or lying through your teeth

:).I know what your trying to say but I have different take on it.

The Port trust land streches from Colaba all the to Wadala.You can't have a huge chunk of land for South Mumbai alone.That's just being greedy lol. People in the suburbs are humans too...
What I would like is 5 different Parks on that land with 30/40 acres. That would mean that greenery would be consistent, make it visually appealing and more accesible for people from the suburbs. It would be like 5 different townships.Each with commercial buildings(strict minimum height regulation),Low-cost housing, luxurious residential buildings,100 bed hospital,not more than a couple of mega mall(they use up huge chunk of land),a few multiplexes and a 30 acre land for gardens and parks.You can have beautiful sculptures ,ponds, doves(hey, just a suggestion) etc...That way no one would crib abt open spaces anymore lol.

-- edit --

Hi guys. Some updates from the downtime:


Firstly, MAJOR news. You know that mysterious project called "Orchid Woods" that had this interesting rendering floating around MPE?:
http://img437.imageshack.us/img437/4554/1894mainthumb3sv.jpg


Well, Neelkamal Group, builders of the massive Orchid Enclave, has updated thier website with a rendering of thier new project, Orchid Woods

http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/3127/orchidwoodsqi7.jpg

The project consists of three towers of 54 stories each! (52 stories + 2 storey podium.)

---

Speaking of Orchid Enclave, we now have a detailed final renderings of the building, as well as the podium, which is christened Orchid South Mall

The two buildings are a whopping total of 54 stories! (47 storey towers + 7 storey mall podium)
http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/4033/elev1qf9.jpg
http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/7207/elev2cs1.jpg
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/2807/elev3lx6.jpg
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/1268/elev4ps8.jpg
http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/8044/southmallyd8.jpg
http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/5388/03cm8.jpg
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/1797/04zs4.jpg

---

Oh, btw, there's also this cute mall coming up by them called Orchid Subrubia Mall, Malad

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/6673/suburbiamallzc4.jpg

~~~~~

Secondly, finally we have the confirmed final design of the The Imperial Towers (formerly SD Towers). This one is straight from Arup's website

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/7855/9ap5.jpg

These 60-story twins will be India's highest-reaching residential towers. But because Bombay is prone to humidity, heat, intense wind pressure, and heavy rains, Arup's engineers designed a facade with extra-sturdy aluminum extrusions to protect the buildings. The abundance of glass windows also provides natural light for the apartments, reducing overall energy usage.

(why facade changed: http://www.arup.com/singapore/project.cfm?pageid=8547)

~~~~~

It seems like Sheth developers have dramatically changed some of their projects. While I'm not sure they are necessarily better looking, they are at least far more distinguishable designs from each other than they were.

http://img70.imageshack.us/img70/1228/sp01oo9.jpg -> http://img70.imageshack.us/img70/3145/sp02se1.jpg
^ Firstly Vasant Splendour has changed design. It seems to have been scaled upwards, now to 50(!) stories (47 stories of rentable flats + 3 storey podium)

---

Another redesign:

http://img236.imageshack.us/img236/6978/gr01qs2.jpg -> http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/4686/gr02nk2.jpg
^ Vasant Grandeur is now 38 stories (with 34 stories of rentable flats + 4 storey stilt)

---

And another:

http://img239.imageshack.us/img239/5008/pol1ek8.jpg -> http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/5952/pol2us5.jpg
^ Vasant Polaris has changed. Now 35 stories tall (with 30 stories of rentable flats + 3 storey podium + 2 storey roof)

~~~~~

Remember Raheja Excelsior at Haji Ali? Before, we only had a rough pre-rendering:
http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/6289/rahejaexcelsiorlarge6ev2zx.jpg

K. Raheja Universal has now come out with a renedering of how it will look:
http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/3081/rahejaexcelsiorlargeqc9.jpg

Looks to be 43 stories tall. K Raheja has redesigned many of their projects repeatedly, so this may not be the final design.

~~~~~

Since Oberoi Constructions refuses to update their website, we have to hear of thier projects second hand. According to the website of firm Leslie E Robertson Associates (LERA) (http://www.lera.com/projects/in/oberoispring.htm), Oberoi Constructions is planning...

Oberoi Spring, Mumbai: three towers of 41 stories each.

---`

Incidently, remember that Oberoi Commercial building? Its now confirmed (http://www.lera.com/projects/in/oberoispring.htm) to be 32 stories tall (27 stories + 5 storey podium.) Some photos of it under construction:
http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/5268/2204644largelg0.jpg http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/6706/3537453smallns0.jpg http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/1741/4401746largekm2.jpg

~~~~~

Ekta Supreme/Lake Homes have launched a new project:
http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/6431/primrosemaineo8.jpg
Lake Primrose, Powai: two towers of 25 stories each; additional towers

~~~~~

I found a new (bigger) rendring of RNA Builders's project RNA Royale Park, Kandivali (West): 25 stories

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/7518/ext20finalpn8.jpg

~~~~~

Here is an interesting project for Orbit Constructions by Chris Lee Architects/ Kapil Gupta with Contemporary Urban India Ltd.

Fort School, Kala Goda
http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/9427/05127czg7.jpg
http://img64.imageshack.us/img64/4152/fort2rt8.jpg
http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/4901/fort3fd4.jpg
http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/3243/fort4gf6.jpg

"Located in the historical district of Kala Goda, the rectangular site with its corresponding planning parameters yields a block massing that attempts to complete a coherent urban form inherited from colonial times. The brief asks for the provision of a school that will cover the complete range of education from pre-primary to high-school level, that will carry a total student population of 2500.

Contrary to the sprawling low-rise block typology of school surrounded by green fields, the planning parameters for the district and the economic strategy of the school governing body dictates a typology of a high-density, high-rise block. Thus the task was to both redefine a school organization on a vertical bias and the adaptation of the core elements of a high-rise for school performance.

5 cores are distributed evenly across the floor plates to act as structural elements as well as circulation. The perforated cores are generated as series of elliptical undulation that thickens to form structural walls with openings for light and visibility. The main core houses a continuous ramp that grazes off the undulating ellipses for support and forms the main circulation for the school. The other 4 cores houses staircases and open lifts. The floors are staggered in the 2 heights, 4.2m floors houses classrooms and labs whilst 3 alternate 6m floors houses shared facilities like a sports floor, cafeteria and library. The façade of the school is also conceived as a structural element made up of a diamond grid to counter the stress along the large cantilevers.

Completion: 2008 [estimated]"

~~~~~

Another project of which only a pre-rendering is released

Tata Consultancy Services Campus, designed by Tod Williams and Billie Tsien

http://img169.imageshack.us/img169/5564/7of2.jpg

"This office complex features eco-friendly elements that also incorporate traditional Indian design. Seen here is an abstract, angular update of the jali, a carved sunscreen that's both decorative and functional. The campus will also feature shaded, open-air walkways for ventilation. Buildings will be built around existing Banyan trees to preserve the landscape.

Completion: 2010"


Cheers!
Jai

I can't wqit for the above to be completed, but IMO the vasant redesigns are quite boring compared to the originals, except for the first one.

the Oberoi projects are quite promising. 50F seems to be slowly getting more commonplace. All they gotta do now is go to 70F and beyond.

These redeigns are great! :runaway:

I actually prefer the re-designs and hope they stay like that or until
they are re-designed again lol.

The other towers are great too with the better renderings! Loving the pictures indeed! This is what Mumbai is about.

However I dont like the Fort School being built in the historic Fort area. Perhaps if it was being built in Bandra-Kurla Commercial Complex then thats fine as it would suit the area. As its in the hertiage quarter it wouldn't look right. Who's giving them permission to build in the Fort area & where would this be built?

http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=202559

How New York could see its reflections in Dharavi

Art Deco will be the architectural style of the rehabilitation buildings when the Rs 10,000-cr makeover of Asia’s largest slum takes off

Kavitha Iyer

Style statements couldn’t be further apart than the Empire State Building, New York, and Dharavi, Mumbai. Yet, they could soon speak the same visual language—Art Deco, the style fashionable in the 1930s and 1940s and which gives Mumbai’s Queen’s Necklace its elite apartment buildings.

And, while many officers of the Slum Rehabilitation Authority—it is undertaking the Rs 10,000-crore Dharavi Redevelopment Project—might not fully appreciate the nuances of Art Deco or its evolution, the government body’s Expression of Interest documents that are to be released very soon anyway mention it as the design form developers are to adhere to. While the buildings comprising the free sale component can define their own style, all the slum rehabilitation buildings are to follow Art Deco’s horizontal lines, geometric patterns and streamlined appearance.

‘‘For one, we wanted one language binding the suburb,’’ says Mukesh Mehta, project management consultant for the project. ‘‘And it’s an attempt at reviving the history of the city.’’

After all, Mumbai has some of the finest examples of Art Deco buildings—all of Marine Drive, Regal Cinema, just-restored Metro Cinema, now multiplex Metro Adlabs, and several sea-facing buildings along upmarket Warden Road.

Mehta says the SRA wanted to steer clear of the general ‘‘bastardisation of architecture’’ and the vulgarity of most slum rehabilitation buildings. ‘‘And the masters have accepted Art Deco as a great style,’’ he says.

Explaining what the Art Deco style comprises, conservation architect Abha Narain Lambah says it refers to a period, inspired by the machine age of the 1930s, characterised by a lot of work on the corners, use of modern concrete technology and borrowing some elements from Egyptian culture, since Tutankhamen’s tomb had just been discovered in that period, alongside several successful Egyptian archaeological excavations.

While the Miami style of Art Deco is mostly defined by horizontal lines, the New York style is vertical, with steps like in the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Centre or Mumbai’s Metro Adlabs.

‘‘But I’d say if somebody loved Art Deco, maybe they should help revive the fantastic, original Art Deco examples we have in Mumbai, rather than create a pseudo Art Deco,’’ Lambah says. ‘‘New buildings have a new context and I’m not so sure about replicating a style from another period.’’

Jai

Nice update.

Hiyo,

Some more tidbits of projects I managed to dig out!

~~~~~

Firstly, MPE is listing Aristo Realty Developers Ltd's Heaven, Mulund West: 4 towers of 34 stories each
http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/4707/260720mainthumbxq9.jpg

I can't friggin find a website for Aristo, nor a larger rendering. The buildings seem to be on a podium of a couple stories or so, so they may be taller still.

~~~~~

Here is an interesting rendering I found from the website of Architect Kamal S. Malik of Ichibaan in Mumbai. I can only guess it refers to a new dealership of Ichibaan Honda.
http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/2339/1fb3.jpg

~~~~~

Here's an interesting development!Premnath and Associates for Ajmera Group designed Saidham, Mumbai: 45 stories
http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/2528/49538520prem20nath20towerwn0.jpg

Looks like in Mumbai 2006, 40 storeys is the new 30 ;)

---

Speaking of Premnath and Associates, here's an Unkown Project, which I think may be in Mumbai
http://img468.imageshack.us/img468/2881/rp11xe3.jpg

~~~~~

And finally, a couple interesting buildings by Architect Sanjay Puri
Regent Hotel, Mumbai
http://img436.imageshack.us/img436/8817/regenthotel2vm7.jpg

Bombay Art Society Art Center (Proposal), Mumbai
http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/8905/artcentre1jpgdw6.jpg


Cheers!
Jai

Thanks Jai

Saidham looks good. Ichibaan is not impressive. Bombay Art Center is just ugly. I hope they never build it.

Sup,

I have been sick in bed all day today, so I had nothing better to do than hardcore go over a bunch of renderings with a fine-toothed comb. I've revised a lot of the heights of buildings shown in renderings to better reflect heights.

~~~~~

Firstly, I've revised the heights of these towers:

Changed The Imperial, Tardeo to 63 storey twin towers UP from 60 storeys.

Changed Unnamed Project by Kalpataru Constructions, to 56 storey twin towers DOWN from 60 storeys.

Changed Nirmal World Homes, Mulund (West) to three towers of 38 stories each UP from 35 storeys.


~~~~~

I also did a better count of Raheja Legend, changed to 48 stories UP from ~35 storeys.
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/1792/rahejalegendanalysiszv2.png


~~~~~

And did a pretty lengthy analysis of two RNA Builders projects that have intrigued me since I first came across them. Firstly, I made a larger, clearer version of the small rendering we had previously of RNA Metropolitan:
http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/7206/rnametropolitanll6.jpg

Having done that, I did a recount of the number of floors. I have now revised the estimate to one (two?) tower(s) of [over] 54 stories (each), UP from ~52 storeys.

http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/6451/rnametropolitananalysisjq5.png
(^I screwed up the compression of the image, but hopefully it's still readable)

---

The other one I did the same thing for was of RNA Metropolis:
http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/6060/rnametropolisek3.jpg

Having done that, I did a recount of the number of floors. I have now revised the estimate to two towers of 48 stories each, multiple towers of ~32 stories each, UP from ~40 stories each; multiple towers ~20-25 stories each
http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/3892/rnametropolisanalysisve8.jpg

~~~~~

I can't wait until RNA releases more information about thier projects, apart from a little blurb and a small ass thumbnail

Cheers!
Jai

When are the 2 RNA projecs and Rajeha Legend expected to be complete?

Excellent renderings Jai.

meanwhile, saw this ad in the online edition of Mumbai ToI.

Launching soon: The Orchard Residences

10 towers, 15 storey each
LBS Marg, Ghatkopar West, Mumbai

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/9620/getimagedllil1.png (http://imageshack.us)

The two RNA projects are simply listed as 'upcoming' projects. Given the turnaround of thier projects, I'd say they'd be completed by 2009.

Rajeha Legend is currently reported as under construction. However, that reminds me, I recently stumbled across this interview with Ashish Raheja, Managing Director of K. Raheja Universal (http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache:23QQ60XUhBwJ:www.realtyplusmag.com/interview_fullstory.asp), which gives some interesting tidbits of what's in store for the next year.

Some of our prestigious ongoing projects include Raheja Anchorage, Raheja Atlantis, Raheja Legend and Raheja Princess, all situated in prime locations around Worli. Raheja Acropolis at Chembur, Raheja Titanium I & II, near Andheri (E) and Raheja TIPCO Heights & Plaza in Malad (E).

We are gearing up to initiate another 12 million sq. ft. of real estate in 2007. This will comprise a mix of sprawling luxury residential estates, commercial hubs, IT Parks and malls in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad and some of India’s fast-growing cities. To name a few, there will be Metroplex, an up-market mall, Raheja One – a signature office tower and Raheja Infocity – a state-of-the-art IT Park. We are also in the process of tying up another 10 million sq ft in other cities.

Q. RK: You have envisioned the creation of a world class InfoTech park called ‘Raheja Infocity’ at Navi Mumbai. Please tell us more about this project and what will be its differentiating factors?

AR: Raheja Infocity is our latest prestigious venture. Slated to be a dynamic, new-age landmark, this development is strategically located a five-minute drive from Vashi at Navi Mumbai; on the city’s rapidly emerging ‘Knowledge Corridor’. And easily accessible. Raheja Infocity is located on the Sion-Panvel Highway, situated opposite the Juinagar railway station and it is a 30-minute drive from Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai’s prominent financial destination.

Designed by renowned DP Architects of Singapore, Raheja Infocity project has been conceptualised as a ‘Futuristic IT City’. Spread over 100 acres with eight million sq. ft. of development consisting primarily of commercial space for IT and IT-Enabled Services as well as the right mix of state-of-the-art infrastructure and facilities, such as a luxury hotel, convention centre, club house, shopping mall etc., to make it a self-contained business district.

So now we have 2 companies with confirmed commercial skyscrapers in the works: K Raheja and Orbit Corp (50 stories)! And I like the way "signature" office tower sounds. Hopefully something eyecatching! :cheers2:

-Jai

Mumbai - over 1,000 acres of prime real estate may soon be up for sale (http://www.inrnews.com/indianrealestate/2006/09/mumbai_over_1000_acres_of_prim.html)

Hold your breath. Imagine a piece of real estate three times the size of all the mill lands in Mumbai Central being available for sale in the heart of Mumbai. That is exactly what may be on the cards, if the Mumbai Port Trust has its way in consultation with the Union Ministry of Shipping. When the fate of so much invaluable land is in question, it is inevitable that politicians and the central govt. will be involved.

The Mumbai Port Trust is the owner of 1,860 acres of land. It is known as the Eastern Waterfront. And it stretches almost limitlessly from Sassoon Dock to Wadala. The Port Trust now plans to revise its land policy, including the renewal of leases, land allotment and sale.

With this view, a proposal has been prepared by the port administration in consultation with the Union Shipping Ministry. Some provisions in the draft proposal, advocate the outright sale of land not required for port activity. This includes land that is outside the custom-bound area, where actual shipping activities take place. These areas probably cover 485.5 acres, leaving a lion's share of the total of 1,860 acres possibly available to the highest bidder, sometime soon.

INRnews

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1056444

Chembur-Santacruz link hits roadblock

Smita Deshmukh
Tuesday, October 03, 2006 00:40 IST

The city’s most ambitious project to make east and west meet is facing a serious delay in implementation because of the state government’s inability to rehabilitate affected shopkeepers.

There are 395 commercial structures coming in the way of the 6.5-km Santacruz-Chembur Link Road (SCLR). The government has not been able to resolve the issue of rehabilitating owners of 242 structures in Kismat Nagar area in Kurla.

The owners, who have come under the banner of United Shop Owners Association (USOA), occupy shop space between 650 sqft and 1,000 sqft. They have rejected a government offer of shops measuring 225 sqft in Mankhurd and are seeking resettlement in a plot in Kurla itself. The alternative? The Motilal Nehru Nagar area in the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC), where the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) is .

For the past two months, senior officials of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) have been busy in negotiations with the USOA, but without much success.

“We have given them the option of six MUTP (Mumbai Urban Transport Project) rehabilitation sites across the city. Since the contractors have loads of civil work still to complete, the progress of SCLR is not affected,” stated Milind Mhaiskar, joint metropolitan commissioner.

Despite the deadlock, Mhaiskar said he was confident that the matter would be sorted out by year-end.

However, the ground reality tells a different story.

The SRA’s 800-tenement scheme in BKC requires at least a year to complete. MMRDA officials told DNA that anxious USOA members were now demanding that they be accommodated in a reserved plot in Kismat Nagar. The plot belongs to the BMC and is reserved for a cemetery and part of it is also under the Airports Authority of India.

“The reserved status of a 10,000 sqft plot in Powai Plaza was altered to accommodate shopkeepers hit by the Jogeshwari-Vikroli Link Road (JVLR). It was a wrong precedent. The USOA now want a similar decision to be taken in their case,” a senior officer said. Adding to this chaos are 17 religious structures and community centres, like temples, gurudwara, masjid, and political party offices that need to be rehabilitated.

Asked to undertake a democratic approach by the World Bank in resettling the commercial units, MMRDA has now adopted the business need analysis model.

“If there is a garage, we give the option of moving to say the Wadala truck terminal. In case of shops, we allot residential areas for rehabilitation,” Mhaiskar said.

Senior MMRDA officials are now questioning the decision to open up BKC, where a commercial establishment costs over Rs15,000 sq ft, for relief and rehabilitation.

“It’s time we segregated rich shopkeepers, who have encroached on government land and reaped benefits for years, and legitimate owners of land,” a senior official.

The recent Supreme Court judgment on encroachment on government land provides a great opportunity for the state to re-formulate its relief and rehabilitation policy, he said.

The government’s frequent flip-flop will put all infrastructure projects in danger, the official added.

A nice render of Sunbeam

http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/9794/sunbeamtoikr7.jpg

Hi,

Am adding to the Bombay Boom Rundown thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=360628) the following buildings.
---

Corrected height information and added new rendring of the re-designing of The Imperial, Tardeo: 63 storey twin towers
http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/1664/image40ni6.jpg

Corrected height information for Unnamed Project by Kalpataru Constructions, Parel: 56 storey twin towers.
http://img108.imageshack.us/img108/8724/17ow3mz.jpg

RNA Metropolitan, Parel: one (two?) tower(s) of [over] 54 stories (each). More information needed.
http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/6128/metropolitanym4.jpg

Added new rendering and information for Orchid Woods, Goregaon: three towers of 54 stories each
http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/5319/orchidwoodshl9.jpg

Added new renderings and corrected height information for Orchid Enclave, Mumbai Central: twin towers of 54 stories each
http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/3415/elev1qf9mk6.jpg http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/2240/elev3lx6tc9.jpg http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/803/southmalliv4.jpg

Corrected height information for Ashok Towers, Parel: 54 storey tower, three 32 storey towers
http://img108.imageshack.us/img108/4489/ashoktowers18ko8ai.jpg

Added new rendering of Planet Godrej, Mahalaxmi: 51 stories
http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/1396/planetgodrejnq2.jpg

Added height information and new rendring of the re-designing of Vasant Splendour Mulund (West): 50 stories
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/3958/spbldgmc9.jpg

Corrected height information and added new better rendering of RNA Metropolis, Wadala (West): two towers of [over] 48 stories each; multiple towers of ~32 stories each. More information needed.
http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/8939/metropolisjs2.jpg

Corrected height information for Raheja Legend, Worli: 48 stories
http://img105.imageshack.us/img105/7771/rahejalegendlarge6kn3dq.jpg

Added height information and rendring of the of Raheja Excelsior, Haji Ali: 46 stories.
http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/6169/rahejaexcelsiorlargeqc9jw1.jpg

New Project: Saidham, , Mumbai: 45 stories
http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/268/49538520prem20nath20towerwn0qn8.jpg

New project: Oberoi Spring, Mumbai: three towers of 41 stories each. Building approved, but no rendering released yet

New project: Spring Mills, Mill Lands: two towers of 40 stories each
http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/8205/bigspringmillsoh0.jpg

New project: Mumbai Mills, Mill Lands: two towers of 40 stories each. More information needed
http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/8410/mumbaimillsny5zm6.jpg

Corrected height informatin for Nirmal World Homes, Mulund (West): three towers of 38 stories each
http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/9554/worldhomephase45xs.jpg

Added height information and new rendring of the re-designing of Vasant Grandeur, Borivali (East): 38 stories
http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/843/grabldgst8.jpg

Corrected height information and added new rendering for Sunbeam Tower, Andheri (West): 38 stories
http://img140.imageshack.us/img140/72/3pn6.jpg

Added rendering for Hiranandani Glendale, Powai: 36 stories
http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/6113/glendaleelevationvr1va6.jpg

Added height information and new rendring of the re-designing of Vasant Polaris, Goregaon (West): 35 stories
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/8688/polobldglw6.jpg

Heaven, Mulund (West): four towers of 34 stories each
http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/410/hopn9.jpg

Corrected height information for Oberoi Commercial Tower, Mumbai: 32 stories.
http://img105.imageshack.us/img105/5616/oberoicommercialtower10zt7rg9h.jpg

New project: Lake Primrose, Powai: two towers of 25 stories each; additional towers
http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/6431/primrosemaineo8.jpg

Added new rendering and height information for RNA Royal Park, Kandivali (West): 25 stories.
http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/5906/ext20finalpn8vo8hg7.jpg

Expedite Mumbai revamp, PM tells state (http://www.indianexpress.com/story/14126.html)

MUMBAI, OCTOBER 5: Reiterating the UPA government’s commitment to turn Mumbai “into the most modern metropolis”, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today urged the state government to expedite the modernisation of the city and reform its administration.

“Mumbai deserves the best urban infrastructure India can afford,” Singh said after laying the foundation stone of the dedicated Western Freight Corridor project here. Stating that the Centre and the state government were working in tandem in that direction, the Prime Minister promised to provide the entire Rs 1,200 crore for the Brihanmumbai Storm Water Drainage Project soon.

“The work on Mumbai Metro has already begun and we will soon finalise the grant support from Delhi. The Mumbai Urban Transport Project involving the Railways is going ahead steadily. There will be all possible support to the Worli-Bandra Sealink and the Trans-Harbour Link through the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission,” he said.

“Taken together, this is investment on a massive scale in Mumbai.” He asserted that the projects, on completion, would improve infrastructure which in turn would spur Mumbai’s growth, creating jobs and income for its people.

Stressing the need for freeing public land for public development projects, he said: “I have asked the Centre and the state government to evolve a programme for welfare and rehabilitation of slum-dwellers so that public land can be freed.”

The freight corridor, the biggest development programme undertaken by the Railways since Independence, he said, would help Mumbai maintain its position as a premier commercial centre.

New building at CST for outstation trains by June 2007 (http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=204092)

Seventh shunting line and three new platforms to decongest rail traffic

Kalpana Verma

Mumbai, October 5: THE bungalow of a doctor, two chawls and a small structure inside St George Hospital have been demolished to make way for three new platforms, only for long-distance trains, in a new building adjacent to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST), described as one of the world’s grandest railway stations by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday.

The new platforms will become operational by June next year.

According to Central Railway (CR) sources, the building housing the new platforms—16, 17 and 18—and a foot overbridge (FOB) will be built at a cost of Rs 80 crore. But later it will replaced by a structure in consonnance with the heritage structure at CST.

Part of the nurses’ hostel will also be demolished to create space for platform 16 for which the authorities have started relocating the occupants. The Railways is building a new hostel for nurses on the St George Hospital campus, which will be ready in 15 months.

‘‘The new platforms will decongest the overcrowded CST and will be able to handle long-distance trains with 26 coaches,’’ said S P Vatsa, Chief Administrative Officer (construction), CR.

For access to the new building, Vatsa said, the state government has agreed to remove encroachments from the Carnac Bunder side and along the P D’Mello Road.

The Tata Economic Consultancy Services and architect Hafeez Contractor have already submitted their preliminary report of the plan to the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC).

The MRVC will submit the final report to the Central Railway after which it will have to be approved by the Railway Board. After that, the MRVC will raise funds for the project by commercially developing the premises.

Continuing its drive to decongest the routes, the railways is laying out a seventh shunting line for outstation trains for which widening work has started.

Shanties at Masjid Bunder have been demolished to widen the bridge for the shunting line. Modifications on the road over-bridge at Elphinstone Road and foot over-bridge at Chinchpokli have been completed for the same.

On fast track
* Work on additional 7th shunting line on at Masjid Bunder. Govt demolished around 30 slums after rehabilitating the residents for which the Railways paid the government Rs 48 lakh in August 2003
* Remodelling of Mazgaon and Wadi Bunder yards

Gulf firm plans $ 2 bn Energy City in Navi Mumbai (http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=204091)

Project will come up on 300 acres, agreement signed with state govt

ENS Economic Bureau

Mumbai, October 5: AFTER diamond and IT cities, now it’s the turn of the energy sector. Gulf Finance House (GFH), a leading investment bank from the Gulf, will set up India’s first integrated energy business district—Energy City India—with an estimated development value of US$ 2 billion in Navi Mumbai.

The proposed project is going to be an integrated business centre that will provide complete business infrastructure for leading oil and gas producers, both local and international, downstream refiners and producers, support services, shipping and energy trading businesses.

Energy City, which will develop around 300 acres of land, will directly acquire the land for this project. Navi Mumbai is emerging as a major hub with Reliance planning a special economic zone (SEZ), proposed airport and several other infrastructure projects.

GFH is being assisted by Valuable Infrastructure Pvt Ltd in the suitability and final feasibility studies for land requirement for the Energy City India. GFH also plans to develop two more in other Asian markets, details of which will be announced early next year.

An important component of the Energy City concept is the International Mercantile Exchange (IMEX), which will provide a platform for electronic trading of energy contracts and derivatives.

Esam Janahi, Chief Executive and Board Member of GFH, and Chairman of Gulf Energy said: ‘‘India is one of the largest energy markets in the world along with China, with a rapidly rising consumption rate. Some forecasts suggest that Indian consumption could double to 5.30 million barrels a day by 2025.’’

The Gulf firm signed an agreement with the government for setting up the project on Thursday. The MOU was signed by V K Jairath, Secretary-Industries, Government of Maharashtra, and Esam Janahi in the presence of Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh.

Deshmukh said: ‘‘The Indian energy sector is growing rapidly as consumption expands to fuel the high economic growth of India. We have seen unprecedented developments in the establishment of energy related infrastructure and capacity in India. In addition, Indian companies have expanded their energy interests by acquiring businesses and assets outside India.’’

The Energy City concept was developed by both GFH and Gulf Energy, an international energy consulting firm.

Late last year, GFH announced its intention of creating a Pan-Asian network of energy-focused business districts or centres, the first of which—the US$2.6 billion Energy City Qatar—was unveiled in March 2006. The prestigious Lusail area in Doha, Qatar, is the designated location for Energy City Qatar.

CITY FOR ENERGY BIZ
Integrated business centre that specialises in the provision of complete business infrastructure for leading oil and gas producers, refiners and producers, support services, shipping and energy trading businesses

An international exchange which will provide a platform for electronic trading of energy contracts and derivatives

Once again, BIG news! (How I like saying that!) Remember the erstwhile Oberoi Skyz at Worli? Looks like its very much in the running and it really is going to be 90 storeys tall!

I came across this blurb at GoStructural (http://www.gostructural.com/article.asp?id=725):
Leslie E. Robertson Associates, R.L.L.P., a 65-person consulting engineering firm headquartered in New York, announced the promotion of four of its structural engineers. Nayan B. Trivedi, P.E., has been promoted to senior associate. He is currently the firm's project manager for Oberoi Skyz, a 90-story residential tower, and Oberoi Spring, a 36- story residential tower, both in Mumbai, India. Prior to joining LERA,Mr.Trivedi was employed as a structural engineer in Saudi Arabia and India from 1996 to 2000. He holds a Master of Engineering Degree in Structural Engineering and a Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering from Gujarat University in India.

So it looks like most of the architectural design has completed (remember how they leaked its 'rocket-like' shape to the press last year?) and Leslie E. Robertson Associates (http://www.lera.com/) are the project's structural engineers.

This is non-news, in a way, in that it doesn't add any new facts, but does confirm from yet another reputable source the size (90 storeys) and the status (design almost completed) of the project. It was formally reported as a 65 storey tower as well.

---

Speaking of Oberoi Constructions... MPE Reports (http://www.mumbaipropertyexchange.com/newsdetail.asp?news=304) that:
Oberoi Constructions Pvt Ltd changes the name of its New Launched Project Oberoi Splendor. The project was earlier named Oberoi Meadows.

http://mumbaipropertyexchange.com/images/builders/projects/thumbs/2463_main_thumb.jpg

Estate News (http://www.estatenews.com/news1.asp?IDP=32) describes the launch as follows:
Oberoi Splendor Launched at Andheri East

Oberoi Splendor launched at Fantasy Land Andheri east, project consist of 4 towers of 21 story, each towers have 3 BHK flats area 1377 Sq.Ft, the project has modern aminities like swimming pool, club, jogging track, security, gardens etc, It will fetch an excellent rent value since Seepz is 5 Min away and 20 min from Bandra Kurla Complex, it will have a great demand from Corporates, It is Blue Chip Project, ideal for investment & Self use


~~~~~

Remember how I was puzzling aboutAristo Realty Developers Ltd's Heaven at Mulund West?:
http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/4707/260720mainthumbxq9.jpg

Estate news reports (http://www.estatenews.com/news2.asp?IDP=31)Aristo Heaven Launched at off LBS Marg, Mulund west, the project consists of 4 towers of 34 floors each, first of each building start above 80 feet, project cosists of 2 BHK, 2.5 BHK, and 3 BHK spacious aprtments, layout adorned with 25 world class lifestyle features, every living room and bedroom with special decks
Doing the math, it translates to 34 floors + ~7 floor (80ft) podium, so we're lookin a total of 4 towers of 41 stories each

~~~~~

Acme Court, Kandivali (West): 28 stories
http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/8758/constructionacmecourthc6.jpg


~~~~~

And finally...

Lalani Group's Mainstreet, Bhandra
http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/5749/askn4.jpg
http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/5740/lalani20nightev2.png

Oberoi Skyz:

This article says its a twin tower of 200 metres and invitation only project.

http://www.agencyfaqs.com/news/stories/2006/08/14/15737.html

It's all very confusing. Let's hope hat it will be 90 storey as Geostructural article posted by Jai states.

Also from the MPCB site google cache...Sept 2006

Sr No. | EIC No. | Name of Industry | Address of Industry | Region | Consent to | Date of Receipt at RO / SRO | Date of Receipt at MPCB HQ | Status | Regional Head at MPCB HQ

236 | MU-0593-06 | I-Ven Realty Ltd.,"Oberoi Skyz", | C.S.No.1/1593,G-south ward Lower Parel Division,Worli, Mumbai. | Mumbai | Establish | 25-Sep-2006 | 25-Sep-2006 | ??? | RO(P&P) S.S.Doke

So does that mean consent to establish was given??? The status field shows blank.

Indian tycoon plans a revolution
The country’s richest man plans a transformation by building new cities, writes Dean Nelson from Mumbai
SITTING in his Mumbai office, Mukesh Ambani, India’s most powerful businessman and the world’s 38th richest man, is in a relaxed mood.

Tesco, Wal-Mart and other western giants might be squaring up for a fight with his Reliance group for the Indian retail market, but he seems unconcerned.

But there is more than bravado in his attitude. In the past year he has survived a painful break with his younger brother, Anil, in which the Reliance business empire was divided. Mukesh lost the Reliance Infocomm mobile- phone giant he created, but he emerged stronger from the split.

His Reliance Industries is now India’s largest company, with a market value of more than $35 billion (£19 billion). The company’s share price has risen 15% since the split in January, and his plans for a social and business revolution in India’s two biggest cities and their agricultural hinterlands have the blessing of a government that sees him as a favourite son.

Ambani’s plans to establish a $5 billion subcontinent-wide chain of supermarkets are ambitious enough — he wants to have 784 branches in India’s smaller cities before opening in the 10 biggest metropolises. But they hide the real scale of his vision. He wants to build a demonstration model of what India could be like and start a revolution in the relationship between its cities and the countryside.

Ambani is creating two new cities, each with 5m people, on the outskirts of Delhi and Mum- bai. The $11 billion schemes will have reliable power supplies, railways, modern schools and hospitals, sewerage systems, and thousands of new jobs provided by foreign investors and manufacturers — things that many of India’s dirty, smelly and chaotic cities lack.

He said the country’s finest fruit and food produce will be supplied to his Reliance supermarkets from 1,600 new farm centres. This, he believes, will wean India’s farmers away from their overloaded bullock carts and draw them into a new and better-paid relationship with 21st-century technology.

At the moment, Ambani has a clear run while the government keeps retail giants such as Tesco, Wal-Mart and Carrefour waiting to enter the country. But, in an interview with The Sunday Times, he explained why he believed the British and American supermarkets could help fulfil his broader vision for India.

“Companies like Tesco and Wal-Mart would contribute to this economy hugely and keep local companies on their toes. We should welcome Tesco because it’s good for competition, and that’s good for Reliance. Every company has a home market and a foreign market. We’re in India, so we don’t need any (help from) regulation to get a head start. Tesco would add value to India. Foreign direct investment should be open,” he said.

Ambani believes his retail venture can generate $25 billion in annual sales and 1m new jobs by 2011 by training farmers to use new machinery and information technology.

The current picture of Indian agriculture is bleak. Debt-ridden farmers are committing financial suicide because half their crops rot before reaching the market. Excessive layers of middle-men, pot-holed roads and a shortage of refrigerated trucks conspire against farmers and consumers, who pay higher prices for rotting vegetables.

“India’s food industry is not organised. There’s a limited shelf life. The losses from moving between farm and store are between 30% and 50% and if farmers can’t sell, they lose everything. The challenge is to cut that out.”

Part of his strategy will involve bypassing India’s ground transport altogether — he has bought a fleet of aircraft to fly fresh fruit and produce to supermarkets from remote farms where poor roads would mean they perish before reaching the market.

The supermarket and farming ventures will be based on the business model Ambani pioneered at Reliance Infocomm, the telecoms company he launched in 2002. Within three years, it had laid 80,000km of fibre-optic cable, and captured 25m customers by offering £6 mobile phones and cutting call charges from 20p a minute to less than 0.5p.

According to Ambani, the model emerged from the approach of his father Dhirubhai, who started a textiles company with $1,000 he had saved as a teenager working as a petrol-pump attendant in the Gulf in the 1950s. The company grew rapidly, before Dhirubhai decided to gamble on India’s poor. He opened a polyester plant with a capacity of 10,000 tonnes when India’s demand was only 6,000 tonnes, saying he believed “polyester is the fabric that will enable Indians to clothe themselves”. Reliance is now the world’s largest polyester producer.

The company expanded into plastics, petrochemicals and oil refining. It is currently developing the world’s largest refinery next to its existing plant at Jamnagar in Gujarat.

Dhirubhai also played a pioneering role in developing India’s capital markets when he launched an initial public offer and drew thousands of first-time investors into the company as shareholders.

His death in 2002 led to the bitter public feud between the two Ambani brothers, and the eventual division of the group earlier this year. Both Anil and Mukesh revere his memory, and at Mukesh’s Mumbai headquarters, his garlanded portrait peers down from almost every wall.

It was Dhirubhai who developed his eldest son’s talent for creating infrastructure projects from nothing when he asked him to return from his MBA studies at Stanford University to build a series of polyester component factories. In 1999, Mukesh sealed his reputation as India’s leading project manager when he led 85,000 staff to complete the country’s biggest oil refinery in just two years, while keeping construction costs 30% lower than BP’s similar-sized refinery in Malaysia.

According to friends, his secret lies in delegation, but he also spent several nights a week sleeping on site in a steel container, learning the oil business by watching training videos during his morning workout.

There is no doubting Ambani’s business acumen, but he describes Reliance’s achievements and mission more like a government minister.

“Reliance is an Indian phenomenon — we have to do whatever we can as a catalyst for the promotion of millions of Indians,” he said. “The other thing we have to ask is: What are the challenges for India? How do we bring the full participation of the educated unemployed who are not technically qualified? “The qualified get sucked up by the biotech and IT sectors, but the vast majority are educated but unable to find employment. How can we develop a business model where we can contribute to meeting these challenges?” But his new cities will be the ultimate test of his political and business judgments and of his skills at project management. The cities are among 181 special economic zones approved by the Indian government to attract foreign investors with tax-free leases and low operating costs.

Reliance has been granted a 150 sq km zone on the edge of Mumbai, and another outside Delhi, for the cities, which are inspired by Shenzhen, China’s pioneering special economic zone, which began as a satellite of Guangzhou and is now a city the size of London.

Ambani’s vision is of global manufacturers such as Nike or Sony creating thousands of jobs, or universities like Stanford or MIT setting up research units, or JP Morgan creating its own mini-city to house its back-office operations.

“In India, what do we have? A large amount of talent. Our biggest challenge is to grow with globalisation. We have 20m young people coming into the workforce every year. We have people, goods and services. What we do not have is integrated infrastructure.

The model I am creating is employment-led. If we can create 5m jobs over the next five years giving $5,000 per capita where the world would pay $15,000, then we give the employer a $10,000 advantage.

“Can we supply the power and infrastructure to create goods and financial services? When we can say that we can, we will be able to attract Nike to make shoes, or Sony and Samsung to make television sets. We believe we can create a quality of life where our brightest people do not have to go to Britain and America.”

Ambani believes India must learn from China, but retains a demographic advantage over its neighbour, where families can have only one child.

“It will become old before it becomes rich. India will get rich before it gets old,” he said.

oberoi skyz is going to be about 65 stories. vikas wanted a 90 storey building and had got bmc clearance, but the DoT objected as it was right next to the TV tower. oberoi offered to put the antenna on top of the building but that was turned down

glaxo's old building is being demolished and skyz should be on its way up very soon

oberoi skyz is going to be about 65 stories. vikas wanted a 90 storey building and had got bmc clearance, but the DoT objected as it was right next to the TV tower. oberoi offered to put the antenna on top of the building but that was turned down

glaxo's old building is being demolished and skyz should be on its way up very soon

Thanks for the update.

That's a bummer :( Though I'm still glad its coming up.

Bombay Boy,
Do you know who the project's leading architect is?

Ambani is creating two new cities, each with 5m people, on the outskirts of Delhi and Mum- bai. The $11 billion schemes will have reliable power supplies, railways, modern schools and hospitals, sewerage systems, and thousands of new jobs provided by foreign investors and manufacturers — things that many of India’s dirty, smelly and chaotic cities lack.


I hope this will really kick start a new revolution in India......hopefully we are gonna see projects like this more often.

I strongly believe tht we are jst watching the tip of a Big Iceberg in terms of wht is happening in India. :scouserd:

:)

Construction World's October 2006 issue has a feature on Indian skyscrapers (http://www.constructionupdate.com/construct/constructionworld/2006Issues/october2006/138.html). There's a lot of blatantly wrong information given (for ex: it says the World Tower of Vedic Learning was designed by Hafeez Contractor), however, in the parts of the article where the author doesn't speculate but relays press releases, there is some interesting stuff.

I'll post the relevant bits:
Ask most people int he know and they will tell you that the tallest buildings currently under construction in India are the Imperial Towers, in Tardeo, mumbai. Built by the Shapoorji Pallonji and Dillip Thacker-owned SD Corporation, they are set to be about 819 ft each, with a total of 60 floors.

In stiff competitoin is the Lodha Group's 57-storey Bellissimo at Apollo Mills, which it bought from the National Textile Corporation for Rs. 180 Crore. The group claims that the 648 ft building will be India's tallest - according to it, SD Corporation has included the height of the antenna and 10 levels of car parking while calulating the Imperial's height. If you calculate the height of the livable floors alone, the Imperial has a height of only about 500 ft., while the height of Bellissimo's livable floors is about 600 ft, they claim. SD Corporation has relatlated, saying that even if the height were measured from the 12th floor, where the liveable floors begin; their building would be tallest at 710 ft.!

While that controversy rages on, the Oberoi Group is planning to construct a 90-storey residential sturcture in Worli, Mumbai, which, if built, will likely be the talest all-residential structure in Asia-Pacific. The project is known as Oberoi Skyz. Another high residential complex is coming up in South City, Kolkata, with four residential 36-storey skyscrapers underr construction.

Hyderabad proposed an 80-storey commerical tower in its new business district, but it was later changed to 60-storey twin towers, before finally being finalized as 20-storey twin towers. In addition, a mega project consisting of a single 90-storey tower, sixteen 30-storey towers, and a mall has been announced.

Construction World's October 2006 issue has a feature on Indian skyscrapers (http://www.constructionupdate.com/construct/constructionworld/2006Issues/october2006/138.html). There's a lot of blatantly wrong information given (for ex: it says the World Tower of Vedic Learning was designed by Hafeez Contractor), however, in the parts of the article where the author doesn't speculate but relays press releases, there is some interesting stuff.

I'll post the relevant bits:

Will go through it.

Meanwhile a project in Navi Mumbai. The website is not functional!

is it like 14-15 storeys?
http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/3726/affairsravechiscu7.jpg

^I'm not a huge fan of mall-like bases, but the tower design is solid. It might look even better if it was in the 20-30 story range.

I've noticed a lot of builders now building towers with large, wide (and rather tall) podiums consisting of malls and parking in order to meet high FSI allowances. Most highrises from a couple years ago and before are built with low podiums or at ground level.

As for the tower, its quite nice. Its design elements and ornamentation remind me of the tech parks popping up in the southern metros - only vertical

Here are a couple other buidings by them:
http://www.mumbaipropertyexchange.com/images/builders/projects/thumbs/1823_main_thumb.jpg
http://www.mumbaipropertyexchange.com/images/builders/projects/thumbs/1824_main_thumb.jpg

Construction World's October 2006 issue has a feature on Indian skyscrapers. There's a lot of blatantly wrong information given (for ex: it says the World Tower of Vedic Learning was designed by Hafeez Contractor), however, in the parts of the article where the author doesn't speculate but relays press releases, there is some interesting stuff.

Yeah this is interesting and there is a feature on the two proposed new tallest buidings in India: The World Centre of Vedic Learning & Noida Tower. Both look very interesting and monsterous & very expensive at the same time.
I agree with you its not entirely accurate.

The height of the Imperial Towers & Lodha Bellissimo are very close but the argument will rage on as which is the highest between them. Again the article itself is not sure and not accurate.

The needs to more of a correct and accurate source which is going to be the tallest but until then the media and us can only speculate. :doh:

Well, the world center of Vedic learning was/is a stillborn project. However, because its made the rounds for a couple years, its rated high on search engines for anyone searching for 'india's tallest tower' and the like.

Its obvious from that reference, and some others in the article, that the author had a core interview or at least a heads up on the SD Corp / Lodha Group back-and-forth, had some figures on the current tallest building, and then bascially did google searches for filler material for the rest of the article.

It's too bad that one of India's biggest construction mags can't really break any news on the status of some of our long awated projects

In fact, the Vedic Learning tower went as far as the foundation stone ceremony, but then it was cut down by local opposition. Not even Maharishi Mahesh Yogi could get past this perinnial issue in Indian construction. (I don't want to start a discussion on the credibility of some of these gurus, FTR)

from the Mumbai edition of the ePaper of ToI. Sorry, no links.

Another mega tower to home in on Tardeo

Yet another skyscraper is quietly springing up in Tardeo, one of the most congested and populated localities of south Mumbai. Work on the 37-storey Crescent Tower commenced recently on a plot belonging to the BMC in Tardeo’s Janta Nagar, just below Usha Kiran building on Carmichael Road.

Under the development plan, the plot is shown reserved for “housing the dishoused’’. Kaushik Shah of Crescent Developers, who is redeveloping the plot in a joint venture with construction giant Shapoorji Pallonji, claims he has already rehabilitated the original 308 tenants who were staying on the plot, free of cost, in four new buildings nearby.

However, local residents allege the BMC plot had empty sheds for several years before they were demolished to make way for the tower. Said Shah, “The project is part of a BMC redevelopment scheme of 1996. So far we have permission to construct upto 28 storeys with a floor space index of 2. We are entitled to another 0.5 FSI, which will allow us to go up to 37 floors.’’

Work on the basement has already commenced. The building will have four podiums and about 30 to 40 apartments ranging from 1,600 sq ft to 3,200 sq ft in size.

The tower is coming up a few hundred metres away from India’s tallest residential buildings—the under-construction 60-storey twin towers in Tardeo’s MP Mill compound, which are also being built by Shapoorji Pallonji. In fact, there are close to a dozen proposals to construct skyscrapers along the hillside on the road connecting Haji Ali to Nana Chowk, raising concerns about the pressure thay would put on the existing civic infrastructure in the locality.

The twin towers are also being constructed by Shapoorji Pallonji through a slum rehab scheme. The construction firm had planned to build a third tower of a similar height but had to scrap it as it necessitated cutting the Tardeo hill, which was prevented by Bombay high court.

“Over the last 30 years or so, not a single new quality school has come up in South Mumbai to cater to middle-class and upper middle class citizens. The redevelopment will add about 2,500 to 3,000 new upper middle class families, who will then vie for the same school, hospital and recreation facilities which are already inadequate,’’ said residents.

Mumbai's cooler cabs get going (http://www.mid-day.com/news/city/2006/october/145077.htm)

The much-awaited new taxis will start on October 18 even as the black and yellow cabbies are viewing the new entrant with suspicion. With the taxi union claiming that the system aims at destroying existing services, the new cab operation is under a cloud of doubt.

Even as Fullora Foundation, the NGO behind the Mumbai Gold Taxi Company, is busy registering its brand new taxis with the Regional Transport Authority, the Mumbai Taximen’s Union president, A L Quadros has said that the sops being doled out to the existing taxi drivers — wherein they surrender their permits to the new taxi company in return for Rs 25,000 as the taxi’s cost and a monthy renumeration of Rs 3000 plus company shares and an additional life insurance policy — is ‘bakwaas.’

Fullora’s Arun Sabnis maintained that nearly 30 taxi drivers switched to the swanky new cabs in three segments — small, medium and luxury. Tata Indigos, Maruti Esteems and Indigo Marinas make up the fleet.

Despite being plush these air-conditioned taxis will have a flag down fare of Rs 15 only (Cool Cabs charge is Rs 16.50). There will not be a single Mumbai Gold Taxi stand in the city, but cabs will be available round the clock then and in a jiffy, promised an executive of the taxi foundation.

The taxi union asked how taxis could be dispatched to a given location in the minimum possible time. The answer to this was that each cab will be fitted with a GPS system enabling its on-time tracking and dispatch. They will also have electronic meters (with bills) for accurate fares.

Sunday MiD Day got an automobile consultant and a routine taxi-user to appraise a Indigo Marina at the Road Transport Authority office in Tardeo.

The consultant, Gurmeet Singh, working for a leading automobile dealership in Mumbai checked out the vehicle and said that it would be a welcome change.

He was however sceptical on whether people would flag down a luxury taxi. He says “A normal Mumbaikar is generally busy and would not want to call for a Mumbai Gold Taxi when the regular taxis are available everywhere.”

User ratings (Out of 10)

• Interiors (covers, door pads) – 8
• Fares (vs Cool Cabs and taxis) – 10
• Accessories (chargers, music) – 10
• Looks – 7
• Mileage – 8 (petrol - 13 kmpl, CNG 20 kmpl)
• Electronic meter and bill dispensers – 10
• Comfort (seats, headrest) – 9
• Leg space – 7

Taxiwallahs Speak — Union president, A L Quadros

• ‘The new system will not work without taxi stands’
• ‘Who has the time to make calls and call for a taxi, boss?’
• ‘Only three cabbies have shown interest in the proposed new package’
• ‘The number of new taxis will never be 100. They are fooling the people’

The only thing missing is the phone number of the new taxi company.

This is an older article that I posted back in June. Reposting for comparison

Use credit card to pay taxi fare (http://ia.rediff.com/money/2006/jun/08taxi.htm)

The scheme, based on taxi service in Singapore and New York, is expected to take off in four months, according to state government's principal secretary (Transport), G S Gill.

"We have already received proposals from two firms for participating in the fleet taxi scheme", he told PTI.

A fleet operator having between a minimum 500 and a maximum 10,000 taxis would be given an operating license, Gill said. However, none of the existing taxi drivers would lose their jobs as they would be absorbed by the fleet operators, he added.

The new taxis would be bigger, with a minimum 1,000 cc capacity and will offer features like global positioning system which would make it possible to track the position of a taxi on Mumbai roads, he said.

Each fleet owner would have a control room. By calling designated numbers, people would be able to get the taxi at their doorstep, Gill said.

The state government wants to have around four to five operators as part of the fleet taxi service, Gill said.

Related article

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1057509

As per procedure, the existing taxi drivers must enroll themselves in the MGTC. They will have to surrender their Premier Padminis, and the proceeds from the sale — approximately Rs25,000 — will be invested in the shares of the company, thus making them stake holders. However, their permits need to be transferred to the new vehicles. “The transfer of permits for over 300 applications received by MGTC is pending with the RTO. It will take a fortnight more to complete the formalities,” Sabnis said.

BMC at work to make Senapati Bapat Marg Mumbai’s best road (http://cities.expressindia.com/archivefullstory.php?newsid=205215&creation_date=2006-10-14)

Illegal hutments, hawkers will go; soon, footpaths, green patches, flower beds

Sayli Udas
Mumbai, October 13: Mumbai’s makeover will now include a facelift for Senapati Bapat Marg—popularly called Tulsi Pipe Road. And the BMC promises to make it the main arterial road connecting south Mumbai with the western suburbs.

Says R A Rajeev, BMC’s additional municipal commissioner (city), the man behind the plan: ‘‘We want to make it the best road in Mumbai, a VIP road.’’ Just like the Western and Eastern Expressways, which link Mumbai to Dahisar and Thane.

Work is already in progress to make the road a ‘‘hundred per cent encroachment free zone’’. Clean footpaths on both sides with paver blocks, green patches and flower beds at regular intervals and dustbins will follow soon.

‘‘We have taken up this road on a priority basis since it links Churchgate to Dadar and further to Mahim,’’ says Rajeev.

The road already has a ‘‘good riding quality’’, but sees severe traffic snarls throughout the day because it’s not wide enough as it has been encroached upon from both sides.

The biggest problem is the row of illegal hutments—950 in all. During the monsoon, 186 were removed and the occupants were provided accommodation meant for project affected persons (PAP).

Now, an encroachment removal squad, including a 200-member task force with 10 vehicles, is clearing the rest in the most encroached area—Dadar West. Over Thursday and Friday, they cleared 382 encroachments.

‘‘There are around 1,100 hutments in that area—Swargeeya Meenatai Thackeray Phool Market, Jawale Marg, D’Silva Road, Chabildas road, Ranade Road and Keshav Sood Bridge—of which 670 are eligible for PAP benefits. The rest will have to go,’’ says Deputy Municipal Commissioner (demolitions) V N Kalam Patil, who is spearheading the clearance.

‘‘All this while we were waiting for accommodation for the project affected. Now, we have been given the go-ahead as they have got alternative accommodation. Work will be on full force on Sunday too,’’ says Rajeev.

He says he has also arranged for continuous monitoring so that the hawkers and hutments do not return. ‘‘There will be heavy penalities if they do.’’

Construction of footpaths will begin on Sunday. ‘‘It’ll be a road every Mumbaiite will look at with pride, and it’ll set the example for other roads,’’ says Rajeev.

HUH! They should do that with all road and move all the encroachments, make pavements, flowerbeds and add greenery.

One of the streets in Mumbai are the worst in the world as per a BBC report into Mumbai as India's financial capital plus you can see that for yourself looki g at some of the pics on here.

Yes of course Mumbai has its problems of housing and the population swell which I can understand but it is only making things worse for the city. Slums everywhere according to many tourists because of too many people as well as the flith and dirt.

I think Mumbai has a long way to go before it can be a better city. Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad are the better cities of India. However many porjects have been kick started and many in the pipeline so there is hope at last.

State-of-the-art pagoda in city (http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=205044)

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/215/pagoda01es6.jpg

Monument set to become one of country’s major tourist attractions

Mumbai, October 12: The work for the World Vipassana Foundation’s pagoda, a replica of Myanmar’s Shwedagon pagoda, is in full swing. It will be completed by December next year. The pagoda, a dream project of S N Goyanka, who has taught vipassana to thousands of people in India and other countries, is situated near Gorai’s Essel World area.

The ceremony of placing sacred relics of Gautam Buddha in pagoda will be done by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on October 29. This unique pagoda will be about 325 feet high.

The Maha Bodhi Association of India has donated sacred relics of Gautam Buddha to be enshrined in the pagoda. Buddhists in Myanmar have also donated materials for the pagoda. It includes 850 marble rocks with the size of one cubic meter each for flooring the pagoda compound; 150,000 square feet of parquet for laying the floor of the cave; timber for crafting Myanmar decorations and 90 door frames; the sacred gold umbrella; stone Buddha statues including 28 2.5 feet high vipassana-practising Buddha statues in various mudras (postures); 18-feet high Buddha statue in sitting position; eight 5.5-feet high standing Buddha statues and donations totaling to $23 million will be spent in building this pagoda. The pagoda will contain a 280-feet diameter cave with no supporting columns. It will be the largest rock cave in the world. Unlike other pagodas, it will not be a solid brick structure, but with a spacious cave in which thousands of yogis can practice vipassana at the same time.

According to the World Vipassana Foundation, the pagoda will be a vehicle for the spread of Buddha’s teachings that emphatically opposes any sectarian, casteism and religious dogmas. His teachings have already proved to be an ideal bridge for peace, tolerance and harmony across all the communal and regional divides splintering India today.

The strongly secular nature of vipassana is further proved by its acceptance amongst people of all religions, nations, sects and socio-cultural backgrounds. Vipassana courses are taking root in even some of the staunchly sectarian countries. This monument will be an added focus of attraction to visitors and tourists worldwide, who visit our ancient country for its rich cultural traditions and its magnificent knowledge in the spiritual field. The sheer size, grandeur and architectural style of the pagoda itself will be sufficient to gain its entry into tourist maps. Even the tourists, who visit the pagoda, as merely another monument for sight seeing, will get great opportunity to receive the true teachings of the enlightened one, understand their benefits and may be inspired to follow the practical path of vipassana.

The Grand Pagoda, as envisioned by Shri S.N.Goenka, will preserve the Vipassana technique, also known as the way out of suffering and the relics of Buddha.

The most significant part of this structure is that it will be more than twice as large as the presently largest dome structure in the world, namely the Gol Gumbaz at Bijapur in India. The stones will be skillfully placed to form a load bearing dome structure without supporting pillars inside the hall.

http://img239.imageshack.us/img239/435/project1cu5.jpg http://img239.imageshack.us/img239/4493/project3mz4.jpg

The height of the pagoda will be 96.12m, to put that in perspective, that's nearly the height of a 30-storey building!

Some more renderings of the pagoda:
http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/4438/pagoda02ru5.jpg

http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/9910/pagoda03je2.jpg

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/5892/pagoda04lc5.jpg

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/9066/pagoda05dj1.jpg

http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/1641/pagoda06bc6.jpg


Some construction views from Google Earth:
http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/6955/imesselplatue01wc7.jpg

http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/7050/imglobalpagodagoogleearcl5.jpg

The website, at GlobalPagoda.org (http://www.globalpagoda.org/) also has construction updates

Cheers,
Jai

Don't know if this has been posted before, but here are a list of projects in the suberb of Powai:

http://powaiproperty.com/images%5Cprojects1.jpg

That pagoda is bloody brilliant!!

A pity they never did the Maharishi tower thing.

One of Mumbai's 100 new taxis

http://www.mumbaimirror.com/nmirror/Mirror%5C2006%5C10%5C18%5C2%5C1018200603728781101820060360250%5Cimages%5Cimgm1city_16.jpg

I thought a long time ago mumbai taxis were gonna become BMW or mercedes like Germany...Old old article..

I thought a long time ago mumbai taxis were gonna become BMW or mercedes like Germany...Old old article..

The news article is new. The idea however has been floating for quite time and was met with opposition from Taxi union leaders.

"Normal" or "average" cars would be just fine really. Or perhaps instead of spending money on luxury taxis they could spend a little bit extra and buy a fleet of hybrid models instead.

How big is Mumbai's taxi fleet, atm?

Also, are these new Lancers part of a new "premium" fleet? If so, should the "standard" ones, i.e. the Premiers, be upgraded to Tata Indigos or Maruti Esteems?

The taxi union does not care if their service sucks, or the common man is shortchanged. Their number one fear is that if this service is successful, their income will go down. And that is all they are trying to protect.

how will their incomes go down if they upgade their cars?

bombay has around 60,000 taxis and over a lakh autos. too many, lots need to be phased out. they create too much congestion

With dedicated bus lanes, newer buses, better service and metro, the taxis and autos will see reduced demand. Good thing is they have stopped issuing new taxi licenses since 1997. Don't know if it is true for autos as well. OTOH, even for a fleet of 100 cars the initial investment is a staggering 5-6 crores. Might take a generation to replace 60000.

the idea of redeveloping the docklands seems to be picking up more steam

How to make the docklands shipshape (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2226045.cms)
Bachi Karkaria
[ 21 Oct, 2006 2133hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
RSS Feeds| SMS NEWS to 8888 for latest updates

MUMBAI: How long must this city remain in the dock? Builders may have drooled greedily over the recent proposal to release 800 acres of Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) land (reported exclusively in TOI , September 20).

Yet, creatively planned and sensitively divided, this windfall could give back to central Mumbai the chance it lost in that Great Betrayed Hope known as the mill-lands. Those total only 600 acres.

When this newspaper first highlighted the cussedly wasted resource of the eastern seafront (June 27, 2005), many citizens looked askance.

They had never set eyes on it, let alone used its wide north-south arterial road. Mumbai's docklands were stripped of their pre-eminence over a decade ago, and much of the prime, 1,800-acre expanse has languished behind the purdah of dilapidation. Another section of Mumbaikars pleaded for benign neglect.

Rather the squalor, they cried, than yet another concrete monster spawned by whorish politicians and profligate land mafiosi.

So, are we eternally condemned to the choiceless choice of cramped slums versus crammed skyscrapers? No. Several cities have ready-to-emulate ways of transforming obsolete dockland into a proud urban showpiece of parks, culture, entertainment - and condominiums and commercial complexes, which bankroll all this public pleasure.

Let us put aside the oft-cited London model, and look instead at a work in progress, Belfast. Thirty years of civil war had completed the devastation wreaked by World War II bombing.

Now, you can see how, in less than a decade of peace, the Northern Ireland capital is swiftly narrowing the chasm between dereliction and development. Notably, unlike Mumbai, it is not bulldozing the rich past into irrevocable oblivion.

Toronto too has spectacularly transformed its lakefront rust-belt, and a Bengali urban planner there astutely told this reporter, "We don't want to create a brand-new city every few decades; we want one that is in constant conversation with its past."

Belfast's master plan for its Lagan riverside and disused shipyards imaginatively preserves its maritime glory. Including a dubious claim called the Titanic.

It is chilling to stand alongside the slipway down which the leviathan hull slid into the dry dock for the world's finest craftsmen to fashion its palatial interiors.

Alexander Carlisle, chief designer of the ship of dreams, and its builder, Thomas Andrews, were local lads, and both perished along with the Guarantee Group, eight of the brightest and best Belfast boys who knew the Titanic inside-out and whom the Harland and Woolf shipyards had sent on the maiden voyage to advise the captain and to trouble-shoot.

The new Titanic museum will pay tribute to this masterpiece and its karmic humbling. A maritime feature marks all the new buildings in this resurrected Odyssey quarter, including the university's technical faculty.

The fallout of the Bombay Dock Explosion of 1944 may not be as legendary (even if the debris totalled 500,000 tons), but a museum of Mumbai's seafaring record could, arguably, create waves.

See what INTACH and Tasneem Mehta accomplished with the Bhau Daji in Rani Baug. Vernacularly designed art, craft and seafood centres, walking trails, even lovers' spaces could easily be tucked into the freed 800 acres of MbPT land.

There would still be enough room for private enterprise which, in a more accountable administration, would fund the adjacent public areas.

Mumbai's now almost-mythical Mithi River may take heart from its Belfast sister-in-slime. The Lagan has been cleaned up and oxygenated, turning from a stinking cesspool choked by shanties and speakeasies into a hospitable environment for seals, salmon-and citizens.

This eco-renewal was pulled off in just eight years. With a similar salvage, Mumbai's sculptors too could create our own'Doll on the Ball', the nickname given to the airy statue of a Greek nymph standing on a globe installed to mark the Irish river's rebirth.

The Laganside Corporation, set up in 1989, is part of Belfast's larger regeneration plan. It uses government money as a catalyst for private investment, and, more importantly, works with local communities to minimise the alienation which vitiated pioneer experiments such as the London Docklands.

Some 1.5 billion sterling pounds have been invested in the redevelopment of 125 waterfront acres. Mumbai could achieve more with less. Belfast's urban and social development plan divides a once-fractured city into the regenerated University, Cathedral, Gasworks and Odyssey quarters.

The Aladdin's lamp of'new spaces for old' has an inevitable positive rub-off. Here, Victoria Square, close to the waterfront, has by osmosis become a fashionable retail hub with Monsoon, Mothercare and McDonald's. Once abandoned, Belfast has sashayed into the list of Top Six British Shopping Cities.

The Troubles had depressed property prices, but now this has metamorphosed into disposable income, pumped up by a young, educated population feeding on the IT fat of the Celtic Tiger next door.

Should sensitive Mumbaikars pale at the prospect of a tarted-up eastern seafront slathered with more garish malls, let developers note that Belfast's retail hives conduct business behind meticulously restored Victorian facades.

In the city's Industrial Revolution heyday, these buildings were grand banks and the swaggering headquarters of the Linen Lords, the Irish counterparts of our own cotton princes.

Mumbai has a lot in common with Belfast's past. With a little will and more honesty, it shouldn't be difficult for us to catch up with its revitalised present.

Nice idea but would it work for Mumbai?

Would hate to see it being wasted like the Mill lands.

More open spaces, parks and recreational areas as well as new aerial roads ands access to other parts of the city as well as importantly housing.

Some odds and ends:

~~~~~~

A while ago, Architect Deepak Mehta posted renderings of a building he designed for Neelkanth Group in Chembur.

http://img54.imageshack.us/img54/49/neelkanthmrbignu3.jpg

Neelkanth has updated their website (http://www.neelkanthgroup.com/upcoming_projects.asp) with this blurb, confirming the project:
Chembur, Mumbai
Another residential complex in the heart of Chembur is also in the planning stages. Details shall follow soon.

~~~~~

I have a height correction for Oberoi Spas, Andheri. The website of Vakil Mehta Sheth (http://www.vakilmehtasheth.com/housing.html), consulting engineers for the project, state the towers to be of 38 stories each, not 36.

http://img236.imageshack.us/img236/2829/oberoispas7uu0ox.jpg

~~~~~~

Finally, Crescent Group has announced plans for Crescent Tower, Mumbai Central: 42 stories
http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/4180/crescenttowerfullpn4.jpg

-Areas 1614 sq. ft , 2386 sq ft & 3228 sq ft to choose from.
-Within 0.5 kms of Mumbai Central railway station.
-Within 10 minutes driving distance of the 3 school & colleges.
-Basements, Ground & Podiums reserved for car parking.
-2 car lifts provided.
-Entrance foyer with high quality marble/super granite finish.
-4 high speed elevators. High quality flooring in the apartments

~~~~~

Cheers,
Jai

Does anyone have new pictures of the SD Towers? (The Imperial)

Mumbai’s new realty bonanza (http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1826109,000600010004.htm\)
Gurbir Singh

Mumbai, October 22, 2006

Bombay Dyeing’s 60 acres—spread across two mills — will be Mumbai’s most lucrative real estate project. Conservative estimates put the commercial yield on it at Rs 8,000 crore, about three times the worth of the land.

“The island city will see two sets of spectacular development — one along the western coast and the other on the eastern side,” Jeh Wadia told HT, referring to the Wadia Group’s real estate plans for Bombay Dyeing and Manufacturing Mills.

The realty, as per civic records, translates into 35 acres within the now closed Spring Mills at Dadar-Wadala in the east and 25 acres at Worli, stretching from Pandurang Bhutkar Marg to Century Bazaar.

At Spring Mills, Bombay Dyeing has already had a soft launch for the first part of its 160-apartment residential project. These will be in the luxury segment with three- and four-bedroom configurations, with bookings opening at Rs 12,000 per sq ft. This is a scale-down as the original civic permission, taken in December 2004, had sanctioned 80,000 sq m for residential development.

With property prices going through the roof, the textile company seems to have preferred the commercial option. As things stand, Bombay Dyeing has pitched for a mega 1 million sq ft mall — possibly the largest in the island city.

The first phase will see a 5 lakh sq ft development. “It will not be a traditional mall with a single large structure, but a series of buildings with inter-connected shopping complexes,” said a company planner.

“The object is to bring in budget shoppers and not cater only to the luxury segment,” he added, referring to the large working class and lower middle class inhabitants in the area.

Considering the severe shortage of hotel rooms, the company is also developing a five-star hotel. With these upmarket projects in a well-landscaped 35-acre complex of 2,000 trees, the face of the Wadala-Sewree zone dotted with chawls and narrow roads is likely to change.

The developers will have to part with 25,775 sq m (4 acres) for gardens and open spaces and an additional 26,556 sq m (4.6 acres) for development of public housing by Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority.

The Worli unit will probably see a more complex, phase-wise development since the company expects to develop real estate while keeping part of the textile operations running. Most of Bombay Dyeing's manufacturing operations have been or are being shifted to the newly-acquired unit at Ranjangaon, in which the company has invested Rs 295 crore.

At Worli, the company has been cleared to develop 13,319 sq m (1.43 lakh sq ft) of commercial space. "The current leased space in the Bombay Dyeing buildings in Worli are a stop-gap arrangement. These will gave way to full-scale development later," Jeh, a director in the company, said.

The company intends to convert part of its textile-manufacturing unit at Worli into an international designer studio producing high-end apparel for brands in Switzerland and elsewhere, the company planner said.

The company has settled a VRS package with its 3,127 workers at a cost of Rs 120.55 crore.

Nice idea but would it work for Mumbai?

Would hate to see it being wasted like the Mill lands.

More open spaces, parks and recreational areas as well as new aerial roads ands access to other parts of the city as well as importantly housing.

WHat is this? HOw did the Mill Lands get wasted. I thought they are being developed????

Wasted I mean through unnecessary development.

Sure the mill lands are getting developed but Mumbai needs more housing, open spaces, recreational spaces, civic amenities like more schools and hospitals etc. With half of the population living in slums I personally believe priority needs to be given to these areas instead of yet more Malls.

Im not oppopsed to Malls! The shopping Malls are nice but doesn't solve the lack of space for housing and the desperate need for housing. The Cheif Minister recently bulldozed many slums and illegal enroachments which is fine but where are these people to go?

Some facts my friend from Construction World:

- 7 million people living in slums.
- Half a million people living on pavements.
- One lakh people do not have an address & move from one place to another.
- 1 million people living in accommodation provided by employers
- 1.5 million people live in accommodation built by government agencies like MHADA
- 2.5 million live in old dilapildated buildings which result in over 100 deaths a year.

See: http://www.constructionupdate.com/co...e2006/042.html

Yet we talk about Mumbai becoming a Shanghai....!

So you see the Mill lands are a huge opportunity to correct this and the scandal of the Mill Lands recently has robbed the city of an golden opportunity.

See also this: http://www.constructionupdate.com/construct/infra/october2005/index.html

Thanks.

Does anyone have new pictures of the SD Towers? (The Imperial)
I just returned from Bombay yesterday (Oct23rd).
Took a few pictures of SD.

For a start let me say, i'm a newbie, but a longtime lurker, and have followed skyscrapers for more than 20 years...

SD is freakin impressive....what can i say ..WOW..Just WOW

Pictures do not do it justice. If you know Mumbai, you see it first, when approaching Fort from the suburbs, right near Shiv Sagar Estate...Its like a Colossus rising...Absolutely freaking stands out...like the WTC used to, in downtown Manhattan...Just towers above everything around and near it.. (Enterprise, Prithvi and Usha Kiran)...

I always thought Shreepati Arcade was cool, (I saw it first 2 years ago, on a previous visit)....But SD is entirely something else...I will post some pictures in the next two days.....after getting over my jet lag....


On another note, there;s a tall rising next to Jaslok Hospital...anyone know what it is ? I took a picture of it..will post it..

how will their incomes go down if they upgade their cars?Saw in article in this, when i was in mumbai..

Apparently the cabbies are paid a fixed rate (5000 /mo), so if you are on your own, you can make more...(12000/mo)

However the pro is that you can now get life insurance and stuff..plus you don't pay for maintenance of the car...Kinda like being salaried v/s self employed...

I just returned from Bombay yesterday (Oct23rd).
Took a few pictures of SD.

For a start let me say, i'm a newbie, but a longtime lurker, and have followed skyscrapers for more than 20 years...

SD is freakin impressive....what can i say ..WOW..Just WOW

Pictures do not do it justice. If you know Mumbai, you see it first, when approaching Fort from the suburbs, right near Shiv Sagar Estate...Its like a Colossus rising...Absolutely freaking stands out...like the WTC used to, in downtown Manhattan...Just towers above everything around and near it.. (Enterprise, Prithvi and Usha Kiran)...

I always thought Shreepati Arcade was cool, (I saw it first 2 years ago, on a previous visit)....But SD is entirely something else...I will post some pictures in the next two days.....after getting over my jet lag....


On another note, there;s a tall rising next to Jaslok Hospital...anyone know what it is ? I took a picture of it..will post it..

Thanks deddog. Can't wait to see them.

I just returned from Bombay yesterday (Oct23rd).
Took a few pictures of SD.

For a start let me say, i'm a newbie, but a longtime lurker, and have followed skyscrapers for more than 20 years...

SD is freakin impressive....what can i say ..WOW..Just WOW

Pictures do not do it justice. If you know Mumbai, you see it first, when approaching Fort from the suburbs, right near Shiv Sagar Estate...Its like a Colossus rising...Absolutely freaking stands out...like the WTC used to, in downtown Manhattan...Just towers above everything around and near it.. (Enterprise, Prithvi and Usha Kiran)...

I always thought Shreepati Arcade was cool, (I saw it first 2 years ago, on a previous visit)....But SD is entirely something else...I will post some pictures in the next two days.....after getting over my jet lag....

Awesome, welcome to SSC! Hope to see more posts from you :)

Looking forward to the pics!

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1059453

Last link in road falls into place

Friday, October 20, 2006 21:02 IST
Puneet Nicholas Yadav

A major hurdle affecting the completion of the last 4-km stretch of the Jogeshwari Vikhroli Link Road (JVLR) has finally been cleared — six months after the scheduled date of completion.

On Tuesday, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) began allotting 300 sq ft build up (225 sq ft carpet area) shops, worth at least Rs10 lakh each, to 360 shop owners — whose demands of being rehabilitated in a prime commercial location had stalled work of the six-lane JVLP.

The 360 project-affected persons (PAPs) are now being relocated in an exclusive three-storey commercial building constructed at Hiranandani complex in Powai. Of the 484 PAPs, 106 are residents and the remaining 378, owners of commercial establishments.

The 11.2-km JVLR is divided into three sections. Two stretches — between the Western Express Highway and Powai, and LBS Marg and Vikhroli — are completed. Only the middle stretch between Powai and LBS Marg is pending as work had halted because of the shop keepers’ protests.

From a ramshackle shop near IIT to owning a marble flooring shop — 51-year old Manish Nair is, not surprisingly, elated.

“I could have never afforded to buy a shop in this locality in my lifetime,’’ said Nair, who is running a plywood business for the past 20 years. But some like hotelier Pravin Shetty are unhappy with the allotment.

“750 sq ft is too small compared to the 1,000 sq ft space I had earlier.” Others like puncture repair shop and tea stalls owners are planning to rent out their shops after allotment.

However, 30 shop owners are still opposing relocation, claiming more space as rehabilitation. K Sonawane, head of rehabilitation cell, MMRDA, said: “It’s only after repeated requests for the past four months that they have started submitting their ownership documents. We will verify them and then take a decision.’’

Jai had posted some info on this... here is some more info

Ariisto Heaven

http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/3018/aristoheaven1sfo8.jpg

http://img109.imageshack.us/img109/116/ariistomumbaizu4.jpg

Lake Superior in Powai from Ekta Shelter
Architect: Reza Kabul (?)

http://img76.imageshack.us/img76/3999/lakesuperiormumbaiswg3.jpg

Sun

"Lake Superior" is good.
"Ariisto Heaven" looks too cramped up for given space. Instead of 4x34F, 2x68F would have looked much more spaced out.

Awesome info sun... from the looks of those buildings, they will have a two-storey podium and two-storey stilt. A count confirms that those buildings in that rendering in particular are (including podium) 38 storeys in height.

Shree Jayant Darshan
Grant Road/Nana Chowk

http://www.darshangroup.net/shreejayantdarshan.htm

http://img123.imageshack.us/img123/1869/ahreejayantdarshanho3.jpg

Rupji Skyline
32 storeys
http://www.rupji.com/Skyline.asp

http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/7650/rupjiskyline1lu3.jpg

http://static.ibnlive.com/pix/sitepix/10_2006/mumbai-potholes_248.jpg
:wallbash:

^^

Just blacklist the contractor and force him to repair at own cost. Plus deduct 6 month's salary for all Babus who signed off on the work.

Shree Jayant Darshan
Grant Road/Nana Chowk

http://www.darshangroup.net/shreejayantdarshan.htm

http://img123.imageshack.us/img123/1869/ahreejayantdarshanho3.jpg

Nice.. also 32-33 storeys

Sapphire Heights
by Lokhandwala Constructions
Three towers

http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/7116/sapphireheightslokhandwlp0.jpg

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/215/pagoda01es6.jpg[/img]




http://img239.imageshack.us/img239/435/project1cu5.jpg http://img239.imageshack.us/img239/4493/project3mz4.jpg

The height of the pagoda will be 96.12m, to put that in perspective, that's nearly the height of a 30-storey building!





Sos to go back to this but but had some signing in probs.
I never thought i'd be able to rant about how good Vip is on this site but there you go...
Its life changing but( i find) the ten day courses fucking hard.
Check it out for your selves..
Where in bombay is this gonna be? An area has been mentiond but i dunno where that is ?.Is it a long way from town?
On the site map it looks like its outside of the city limits.
So (as a -temporarily lapsed- vipassana meditor) i supose i'm alowed to say that when i first heard about it a few years ago , i thought it was just a complete waste of time & effort.
We attend courses & our donations are then spent on mere symbols rather than something that aids the pratical aplication of the Vip technique.
However in the article it says, there will be meditation cells in the structure.So is the pagoda part of a new Vip meditation centre?
Architectually its brilliant.Pagodas are very beautiful
One thing the visual spiritual landscape of india lacks(not that it realy lacks anything) is pagodas.Im obviously biast but the more the merrier i say.
(I somtimes wonder how history would have been if Budhism hadnt completly died out in India & if Chilna had got to America before Europe ,as so nearly happened ...)
be happy dread

One of Mumbai's 100 new taxis

http://www.mumbaimirror.com/nmirror/Mirror%5C2006%5C10%5C18%5C2%5C1018200603728781101820060360250%5Cimages%5Cimgm1city_16.jpg

Sos another late post.

So visa vie the new cabs.
Althought the taxi mafia , i mean union ,is sceptical about the future of this they're wrong.As much as we might like the 50 year old fiats (padmini) character they are actually bloody uncomfortable.
Too small , like head in the roof & bent neck(and im not tall -175cm) and hot & fumey.The 'cool' cabs a/c is never on as it takes too much power from those ancient engines.
So from a customer point of view its gonna succeed.
from the drivers also.initaly they may take aslight drop in revenue.this is offset by much better working conditions & once the stake holder bonuses get big they'll be onto a winner.
Thsi will have a knock on effect.
Like alot of india there is tremendious over employment in the the cab sector in mumbai.Some of those guys at the stations & airports have a 24hr turn around once they're in a queue.thats only 4 or 5 fares week.IE fuck all.
Once these guys, many of whom are not ownwer drivers realise thay can get a new cab to drive, its job done.
By 2010, like when i next get to bombay, i'll be suprised if theres still 50% padminis left.The trouible will be the union, bandhs etc.
its all long over due(Even african cities have modern cabs usualy 15 year old Mercs & Pugs often smuggled down...)
And its demeaning for a guy to have to drive a car that U can c the road through the floor.
It all starts now for india.ten years of 8% grwth will c some major changes.
lets hope weak government doesnt mean that the infrastructue just crumbles under the weight of change.

VIA HTMumbai Oct28

A Whole New Mumbai Darshan

Revamped forts, Second Marine Drive on states 15 crore tourism agenda

http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/5995/4yl4.jpg

http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/7694/1nw3.jpg

http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/1882/3gg1.jpg

http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/3564/2ll0.jpg

dnt know if this is posted or not but came across this and thought of posting it.
-------------------------------------------------
Vashu Bhagnani to build 500-crore rupee studio on the lines of universal studios

By Subhash K. Jha, October 27, 2006 - 08:13 IST

Prolific producer Vashu Bhagnani has moved to a new level. "One dream of mine was fulfilled when I built a building right in front of Mr Bachchan's residence Jalsa. At one time I used to stand in front of his house waiting for his glimpse. I've acquired a property right in front of Jalsa. I'll make it Building No.1 in Mumbai,” says the producer of Biwi No 1 and Hero No.1. "This is my tribute to the legend called Amitabh Bachchan. I've named my dream - building ‘Pinnacle – The Dreams’. In a few months it will be ready."

Vashu is deeply disillusioned by the lack of genuine empathy in the film industry. "The last six months have been like a sabbatical from showbiz. No one except David Dhawan bothered to inquire about my well-being. I had suffered heavy losses in film production. So I decided to earn some money through construction. I don't think work should be discriminated. Film production or construction, I treated them both with equal respect. I wish I could say the same of my friends in the industry who abandoned me because they thought I had quit the industry. I've been working round the clock picking plots of land and overseeing the construction. I've been very depressed lately. I had stopped attending my production offices. I had become disconnected with the film industry. Bollywod is a place where no one cares. Aata hai to bhi acha, jaata hai tab bhi theek hai. No one bothered to ask how I was. God is great enough to give me a second chance."

Vashu wants to grab this chance with both hands. "One of my pet projects is to start a grooming school for star aspirants in Khar. So many talented boys and girls with dreams in their eyes don't know where to go. I want to build a place where 5 boys and 5 girls will be selected every year and groomed into potential stars. I want to give the deserving newcomers the poise polish and confidence that they don't have." This project stars within six months.

Vashu has decided to return to movies. "It's because cinema is my passion. Also, it's time for me to launch my son Jacky. I've started listening to one story every day so I can zero in on a project for my son. But I need to finalize a director for my son. Who will work with me? In any case I want to announce my son's launch project on 1 January 2007. That would be a father's gift to a son. Now that I'm financially sound I don't need anyone's support, moral or financial. I will take a new director and launch my son. "

Why not buddy David Dhawan? "I can't ask him for such a favour. David only works with big stars. I can’t force him into a corner for my son. David has been a true friend. Not a day has passed when he hasn't phoned to offer me every help including financial No one offers money in this industry. David has offered me his signed cheque if I needed money. We didn't work together for five years before Shaadi No.1. We never lost respect for each other. He’s a man who would happily give me 1 crore if I need it. He has been a good adviser even for my construction business."

Vashu sighs. "I've survived. But what about other producers who go bust? My six-month sabbatical has made me think. For them I've decided to do something. Last week I met the chief minister of Maharashtra for land for a fully-equipped film studio that would become the pride of the Mumbai film industry. The CM has agreed. I've requested for land allotment within Film city (Goregaon). I've discussed a bank loan for this 500-crore rupee project, and about 10-15 percent of the money will go from my pocket. Art director Nitish Roy will design the studio. We expect thousands of tourists to visit this studio. To raise funds for the needy we'll auction memorabilia souvenirs clothes and paraphernalia of stars from 1940 onwards. The proceeds from these sales will go to needy actors and film persons. In addition this will be a tourist site with restaurants, etc. I'm not a very powerful person. But this is one of my concrete projects. I want to build a compact version of Universal Studios in Hollywood. In fact I went into the construction business to fulfil this dream. I also want to build a hospital within Film City (Goregaon) only for industry folks."

http://www.indiafm.com/features/2006/10/27/1748/index.html

Some odds and ends

~~~~~

Mittal Commercia, Andheri (East): 12 stories
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/9166/icommerciapg01bfu9.jpg
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/7334/icommerciapg03bro7.jpg

~~~~~

Mittal Park, Thane: 20, 10 stories
http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/4241/iparkpg01ber7.jpg

~~~~~

Mittal Grandeur, Cuffe Parade, is built on the grounds of the restored Taraporevala Mansion: 20 stories
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/4285/iimg01cg4.jpg

~~~~~

Mittal Grandeur looks cool. So it seems they are not doing the render at Hafeez Contractor's site.

Few random updates.

Queen’s Necklace gets finer touches (http://www.cybernoon.com/DisplayArticle.asp?section=fromthepress&subsection=inbombay&xfile=October2006_inbombay_standard11184)

The deadline for the completion of the first phase is set for January 2007, when it would be formally inaugurated

Fast boat from Nariman Point to Bandra in 20 minutes flat (http://www.cybernoon.com/DisplayArticle.asp?section=fromthepress&subsection=inbombay&xfile=October2006_inbombay_standard11183)
Interestingly, the project has finally been awarded to the Mumbai-based Satyagiri Shipping Company (SSC) by the MSRDC.
......
The project is anticipated to cost Rs. 1,000 crore including terminals, dredging, and breakwaters besides the cost of the crafts. The all-weather hovercrafts are being purchased from ABS Hovercrafts of UK.
“We have been awarded the project and have cleared all formalities for the execution of work. We are supposed to obtain the concession certificate and possession of land from the BMC for the construction of terminals by next month. Then we will slowly start construction by January and the work is expected to be complete in two years. The hovercrafts will be specially designed as per the wind force and climatic conditions of Indian seas,” said Nitin Joshi, chairman and managing director of SSC.

CR to get 3 new platforms on hospital land (http://www.cybernoon.com/DisplayArticle.asp?section=fromthepress&subsection=inbombay&xfile=October2006_inbombay_standard11188)

“We are increasing the number of platforms by three,” said C. Pidambaram, senior public relations officer of Central Railway. “The problem we have been facing is that the platforms we are currently operating are only for 18-coach trains. The new ones will be built for 24-coach trains. That will enable many more bookings and many more trains to come to Mumbai.”
The new platforms are coming up next to the last platform, Number 15, on land transferred to the Central Railway from Western Railway and St. George Hospital.
“Officially the land belonged to the Western Railway,” said Pidambaram. “They operated a goods shed there. The state transferred it to us and we started work immediately. We soon realised that the area was not enough for the length of platform that we required, so we requested the government to grant us some more land. Now we will be exchanging land with St. George Hospital, our immediate neighbour.”

2 months more to go for Churchgate modifications (http://www.cybernoon.com/DisplayArticle.asp?section=fromthepress&subsection=inbombay&xfile=October2006_inbombay_standard11189)

The changes are meant to improve ‘air circulation’ within the congested station

About time.

The new taxi video from CNN-IBN

http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/25019/mumbai-gets-24carat-gold-cabs.html

Plus you start thinking if our nation will progress when pessimistic leaders like these are against a project. It almost seems that this man will be happy if the project fails so that his ego gets bigger.


I give them 3 months, says Quadros
http://www.cybernoon.com/DisplayArticle.asp?section=fromthepress&subsection=inbombay&xfile=October2006_inbombay_standard11117

A.L.Quadros, general secretary of the Bombay Taximen’s Union, is against the entire new scheme. “And that is why we staged a demonstration when the taxis were launched. The government has based this new taxi system on what Singapore is following. In Singapore, there are four companies that own taxis, and the drivers are on their pay rolls. But such a system will not work here. This is because, from being the owners of their own vehicles, Mumbai’s taxi drivers will just become drivers. And with 1,50,000 Mumbaikars solely dependant on their taxi earnings, they will not choose to work for a pay roll of Rs. 5,000 which is much less than what they earn in a month right now. Thirty of our drivers joined and have become drivers of new taxis. They surrendered their permits. They will be working in shifts, and for each shift, they are asked to get Rs. 380. This will not be possible because the public will reject the taxis. One reason for the rejection will be the new taxis’ call centre. The public will have to make a call to hire a cab. Which Mumbaikar has so much time? As it is, this is a bad time for taxis. Our business is diminishing, as on an average 5,000 private cars are bought every month. In Singapore, taxis are doing well, as there are not many private cars. We have 3,800 Cool Cabs running in good condition. But these are not so popular because their rates are higher than the black and yellow cabs. You think that these new taxis will get customers? I give the new taxis three months, and then they will be off the roads for good."

When a good idea's time has come, no bloody union neta can stop it from happening.

The people of Mumbai have not designated him to answer for them. They will decide for themselves what they think of the service, and it will be a positive vote, inshallah.

Meanwhile...

Makeover boost, first-ever housing policy for Mumbai (http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=207298)

Makeover boost, first-ever housing policy for Mumbai

To be announced on Nov 1, it’ll include: More FSI (variable), repealing ULCRA, low-income housing in unlocked no-development zones

In the country’s most congested city, real estate, its availability and its cost could soon change forever, alongside a promise of improved access to low-income housing and massive redevelopment of crumbling properties in Mumbai. And all this is through a first-ever housing policy to be announced by Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh on November 1, a policy that will be reforms-driven and more liberal than ever before.

Increased FSI, But Variable FSI

An increase in FSI is on the cards, but not an across the board hike. While the average FSI of the city is certain to see a rise, there will also be locational or regional variations in maximum permissible FSI.
Also, Mumbai currently has a semi-uniform maximum permissible FSI of 1.33 for the city, 1 for the suburbs, apart from incentive FSI of 2.5 for slum redevelopment projects, etc. That is set to give way to variable FSI: Business districts, buildings within a certain radius of transport nodes like the railways—and soon, the Metro Rail—-will get higher FSI. That means, a relationship is to be drawn between infrastructure availability and FSI in that area.

That also means greater FSI for the hinterland suburbs serviced by the railways—this mainly comprises the suburbs in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, whose development is now being seen as vital for the renewal of Mumbai.

repeal of ULCRA in the long-term

Something already promised by the government, this is believed to be something crucial to the housing industry. It’s also been a longstanding demand from builders as well as from the Centre in recent months to repeal the Urban Land Ceiling Act. Large amounts of land will be released thus, made available mostly for residential development.


CRZ and NDZ relaxations

Unlocking some no-development zones to make available land for low-income housing and rental housing, with increased FSI. Also proposed: A scientific cost benefit analysis of allowing restricted development on CRZ lands and salt pan lands.


Public-private participation

Developing housing stock through the PPP route is to be emphasized, especially in the redevelopment of the BDD chawls (all 80 to 100 years old, built by the British) the 16,378 cessed buildings (which pay a repair cess to MHADA’s repair board and see annual collapses post-monsoon). In the long term, it would cost MHADA Rs 5,000 crore to redevelop the cessed buildings these properties.


The other major points in the policy include promoting block-by-block renewal schemes, as in the Dharavi Redevelopment Project and tapping the commercial potential of surplus lands available with government and parastatal agencies—railways, CIDCO, etc.

Not exactly rosy but figures of 3500-4000 taxis by year end are being bandied around

Red tape stalling (http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=207525)
Only 2 registered; govt not doing enough, says fleet Co

Swanky hi-tech taxis to roll on Mumbai streets today (http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=207301)
While 328 drivers have been hired for the Mumbai Gold Project, Bombay Taximen Association has opposed this initiative

I'm glad they're using Tatas as their upgraded standard taxis. This may sound anti-globalist, but it's preferable for a car-making country to use its own cars for its public service vehicles, such as taxis, police cruisers, etc., unless there is no locally designed vehicle for a particular niche.

It is ok to use Lancers/Hyndai Sonatas as permium cabs in this case because there is no local design in their size category.

IMO, other cities, including the two IT hubs, should also consider introducing Mumbai-style cabs, to help compete with autos in some parts of town.

Not exactly rosy but figures of 3500-4000 taxis by year end are being bandied around

Red tape stalling (http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=207525)
Only 2 registered; govt not doing enough, says fleet Co

Swanky hi-tech taxis to roll on Mumbai streets today (http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=207301)
While 328 drivers have been hired for the Mumbai Gold Project, Bombay Taximen Association has opposed this initiative

A few teething problems as expected.I even anticipate a union organised bandh once padmini drives get to understand that once they pay whats owed on the new cars they're theirs.IE: not only do they get to be stake holders & get divedends but they are self employed stake holders.
Union bosses will see there days are numbered & kick up a hell of a stink.But they WILL lose.Its a good idea so its unstopable.Other things moving like repeal of URCLA, new metro, new boat & sea link, increased FSI ,will all add to the pressere to modernize the taxi system.The zietgiest will be toward modernity. 500/750 new ones by the end of the year, then 1500/2000 per year.So in 5 years 10000 minimum, i reckon.(Which is half i think?)

Orchid Woods
Goregaon East
Dynamix Group

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/4884/1894mainsrj4.jpg

Kingston Tower
Parel
Siroya Developers

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/926/2437mainkingstonto0.jpg

Oval Tower
Tardeo
Darshan Group

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/7540/ovaltower2628qn7.jpg

Moksh Mahal
Mulund West
Moksh Corporation

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/7925/mokshmahal2132mainmc7.jpg

Ashok Gardens
Parel
Peninsula

http://img92.imageshack.us/img92/5533/2435mainashokgardensr5.jpg

A quick count:
Kingston Tower - 38 stories
Moksh Mahal - 28 stories
Oval Tower - 25 stories
Ashok Gardens - 2 x 28 stories

Shreepati Towers
Girgaon

http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/2428/1284shreepatotowerpn7.jpg

Vishnu Shivam Tower
Kandivali (E)
Tele Build Constructions Pvt Ltd

http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/9149/vishnushivamtower939sy1.jpg

Shreepati Castle
Grant Road

http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/4300/shreepaticastlegrantroawh4.jpg

Satellite Tower
Goregaon (East)
Satellite Group

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/6588/satellitetower1050ib1.jpg

RNA project???

http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/2704/unknown2460mainil3.jpg

RNA project???

http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/2704/unknown2460mainil3.jpg

Yes

Garnet plans Rs 450-cr township in Panvel (http://business-standard.com/compindustry/storypage.php?tab=r&autono=263609&subLeft=1&leftnm=1)

Mumbai-based real estate firm Garnet Construction is planning to build a Rs 450-crore township by 2010 in Panvel near the Mumbai-Pune Expressway.

Spread over 400 acres, the township will include an IT park (100 acres), residential buildings (200 acres) and educational campus (100 acres). The company has acquired 305 acres and expects to acquire the rest by April 2007.

He said the residential complex would have apartments, row houses and independent bungalows, in the range of Rs 5-40 lakh. “The real estate pricing has been done in such a way that township is not confined to a particular section of the society,” said Kedia.

Kedia said that the IT park would be leased out to tech majors and the educational campus to foreign varsities. “We are in talks with a few American universities. Our educational infrastructure will support elementary as well as higher education,” he said.

Garnet is also developing a residential project in Lonavala. It plans to build 117 bungalows.

The complex has been designed for two, three and four bedroom bungalows with gardens, terraces and parking space.

Grace Pinnacle
Andheri
Sippy Housing

http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/3231/gracepinnacleandherirq6.jpg

Solitaire
Powai

http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/4756/solitairepowaiseh6.jpg

Pearl Residency
Prabhadevi
Ariisto Realty

http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/9053/pearlresidencyby5.jpg

NAVI MUMBAI some project photos - four to five months old

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/7048/navimumbaicollsgu9.jpg

The RNA tower is RNA @ Central Park, Chembur

Shreepati Towers: 38 stories
Vishnu Shivam Tower: 35 stories
Shreepati Castle: 35 stories
Satellite Tower: 37 stories
RNA Central Park: 45 stories

I'd previously estimated that RNA tower at 40 stories. I'm glad I was 5 short! It seems to have undergone a slight design change as well
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/1195/16om3.jpg http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/4659/2460mainthumbcd6.jpg

Cheers,
Jai

Oberoi Springs
Andheri

http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/568/oberoisprings321mainwb0.jpg

Some Mumbai updates (a few months old)

http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/7743/mumbaipano1sqj3.jpg

Some more Navi Mumbai updates

http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/3324/navimubaipano2sgw6.jpg

Some more Mumbai updates

http://img49.imageshack.us/img49/2805/anothermumbaipano2szb7.jpg

RNA Royale Park
Kandivali (W)

http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/8766/rnaroyalepark1856mainslk9.jpg

NG Royal Heights
Andheri
RNA(NG) Builders

http://img325.imageshack.us/img325/1519/ngtower2140mainsc3.jpg

Shantivan
Thakur Village
Vijay Associates (Wadhwa)

http://img294.imageshack.us/img294/2057/shantivanthakurvillagewahwa1hk9.jpg

Dosti Flamingos
Parel

http://img420.imageshack.us/img420/5028/dostiflamihngos802pi4.jpg

Even more Mumbai updates (though at least a few months old)

http://img300.imageshack.us/img300/2151/citymumbabaibuildpano3ssn8.jpg

Seriously good photos and up-dates.

Things have progressed well to my surprise.

from the Mumbai edition of the ePaper of ToI. Sorry, no links.

Another mega tower to home in on Tardeo

Yet another skyscraper is quietly springing up in Tardeo, one of the most congested and populated localities of south Mumbai. Work on the 37-storey Crescent Tower commenced recently on a plot belonging to the BMC in Tardeo’s Janta Nagar, just below Usha Kiran building on Carmichael Road.

Under the development plan, the plot is shown reserved for “housing the dishoused’’. Kaushik Shah of Crescent Developers, who is redeveloping the plot in a joint venture with construction giant Shapoorji Pallonji, claims he has already rehabilitated the original 308 tenants who were staying on the plot, free of cost, in four new buildings nearby.

...

The tower is coming up a few hundred metres away from India’s tallest residential buildings—the under-construction 60-storey twin towers in Tardeo’s MP Mill compound, which are also being built by Shapoorji Pallonji. In fact, there are close to a dozen proposals to construct skyscrapers along the hillside on the road connecting Haji Ali to Nana Chowk, raising concerns about the pressure thay would put on the existing civic infrastructure in the locality.I just realized that this article is about this tower, Crescent Tower, Tardeo: a total of 42 stories with podium

http://img349.imageshack.us/img349/7585/crescenttowerfullpn4ry1.jpg

Hi,

Am adding to the Bombay Boom Rundown thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=360628) the following buildings.
---

RNA @ Central Park, Chembur: 45 stories.
http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/4506/unknown2460mainil3gb0.jpg

Crescent Tower, Tardeo: 42 stories
http://img349.imageshack.us/img349/7585/crescenttowerfullpn4ry1.jpg

NG Royal Heights, Andheri: 42 stories
http://img288.imageshack.us/img288/8906/2gr1.jpg

Ariisto Heaven, Mulund: four towers of 38 stories each
http://img122.imageshack.us/img122/715/aristoheaven1sfo8sj4.jpg http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/410/hopn9.jpg

Oberoi Spas, Andheri (West): three towers of 38 stories each
http://img236.imageshack.us/img236/2829/oberoispas7uu0ox.jpg

Kingston Tower, Parel: 38 stories
http://img118.imageshack.us/img118/9194/2437mainkingstonto0fz4.jpg

Shreepati Towers, Girgaon: 38 stories
http://img131.imageshack.us/img131/8459/02rr9.jpg

Satellite Tower, Goregaon (East): 37 stories
http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/8217/satellitetower1050ib1dc9.jpg

Vishnu Shivam Tower, Kandivali (East): 35 stories
http://img275.imageshack.us/img275/4034/vishnushivamtower939sy1tn3.jpg

Shreepati Castle, Grant Road: 35 stories
http://img162.imageshack.us/img162/8477/02ok1.jpg

Rupji Skyline, Lower Parel (East): 32 stories
http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/866/1sq5.jpg

Shree Jayant Darshan, Grant Road: 32 stories
http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/1153/01ve6.jpg

Sapphire Heights, Kandivali (East): three towers of 30 stories each
http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/673/sapphireheightslokhandwdx2.jpg

RNA Royale Park, Kandivali (West): 30 stories
http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/4858/rnaroyalepark1856mainslkd2.jpg

Ashok Gardens, Parel: two towers of 28 stories each
http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/803/2435mainashokgardensr5ts5.jpg

Corrected heigt information for Solitaire, Powai: 28 stories
http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/6886/solitairepowaiseh6ns1.jpg

Moksh Mahal, Mulund (West): 28 stories
http://img118.imageshack.us/img118/9844/mokshmahal2132mainmc7ev5.jpg

Acme Court, Kandivali (West): 28 stories
http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/4769/constructionacmecourthcer0.jpg

Global Vipassana Pagoda, Goregaon: 27 stories
http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/3476/1nz1.jpg http://img74.imageshack.us/img74/7572/2eg9.jpg

Lake Superior, Powai: 25 stories
http://img430.imageshack.us/img430/5275/lakesuperiormumbaiswg3lb0.jpg

Oval Tower, Tardeo: 25 stories
http://img238.imageshack.us/img238/3390/3eo2.jpg

~~~~~

Cheers,
Jai

Construction World Reports (http://www.constructionupdate.com/construct/constructionworld/2006Issues/november2006/034.html):

http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/7220/1iv6.jpg

Gulf Finance house, which developed Energy City Qatar (http://www.energycity.com), has tied up with the Maharashtra Government to set up a similar township near Mumbai.

The Bahrain-based investment bank will invest $2 billion in the project. It will aquire 300 acres of land in Navi Mumbai at prevailing market prices. The initial investment of $300-400 million will be raised from strategic investors and high net worth clients. The rest will be through debt, some of which would also be offered through Indian banks.

Peter Panayiotou, Chief Investment Officer, said the project would have all the facilities the Qatar Energy City provides players within the petroleum sector, including an exclusive dataming platform for energy trading. the bank proposes to set up a special purpose investment vehicle for the proposed development, which, in turn, will float a wholly owned development company for the ownership.

Gulf Finance house's website[/b] (][b) has the official press release. You can see that the press release photo looks similar to the masterplan for Energy City Qatar, which I'll post below for comparison's sake:
http://img288.imageshack.us/img288/7408/011am9.jpg
http://img154.imageshack.us/img154/844/012oh8.jpg
http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/6466/01oy7.jpg

Hopefully they will use Indian architects to give more of an Indian feel to the architecture.

Cheers,
Jai

When viewed from the top, Energy City Qatar reminds me of a Nautilus, for some reason.

Good updates Jai, Sun.

Don't know why none of the regular papers carried this.. probably they were too busy covering Brangelina's up-to-the-minute update.

Centre to finance two road projects in Mumbai (http://www.projectstoday.com/newsr.asp?newsid=16382)

The Central government has sanctioned financial aid for two developing two projects - the Eastern Freeway and the Sahar Elevated Road under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission.

The funds provided by the centre is Rs.350 crore (Eastern Freeway) and Rs.155 crore (Sahar Elevated Road) respectively and will be executed by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority.

The Eastern Freeway is a 22 km long stretch, of which a 10.5 km has been sanctioned. Out of the 10.5 km, 7 km will be an elevated road. Sahar elevated road is a 4 km stretch creating a direct connectivity between Western Express Highway and Sahar International Airport.


Mumbai metro project: EoIs invited for rolling stock (http://www.projectstoday.com/newsr.asp?newsid=16361)

Reliance Energy has invited global expressions of interest from domestic and international rolling stock manufacturers for the design, manufacture, supply, testing and commissioning of the entire rolling stock for the Mumbai metro rail project. The quantity specified is around 64 cars for Phase I of the project and 108, overall.

Reliance Energy plans to issue the Notice Inviting Tender (NIT) around January 2007 only to those that respond and qualify to the EOI in question. The last date for submission of EOIs is 15 November 2006. Click here for original EOI notice.

Earlier in the month, Reliance Energy had invited global EOIs from civil contractors.

The Majestic
Prabhadevi
Cosmos Group

http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/7307/themajestic1896mainprabyw4.jpg

Garden Estate
Goregaon West
Poddars and Ashish Developers
(a photo is in picture update post - wrongly mentioned as Garden Tower)

http://img295.imageshack.us/img295/1370/gardenestates2256mainxh0.jpg

Some more (mostly completed projects)

http://img58.imageshack.us/img58/2563/seemumbaipano4jj3.jpg

Finally, fast bus lanes for Mumbai buses from Jan
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1837495,000600010004.htm

If the BEST has its way, the commuters in eastern suburbs will have an option to travel upto Dadar in the comfort of airconditioned buses plying on dedicated bus lanes from January.

The BEST has begun the process to acquire luxury buses to be run on dedicated high capacity corridors between Thane and Mumbai. In the first phase, 20 such buses will ply between Thane and Dadar from January.

"It will be a new year's gift to the residents of Thane and Mumbai from the BEST and they can keep their cars in Thane and need not bring them all the way to Mumbai. We assure that our buses will offer all the required comfort of a car and that one can forget the hassles of driving in traffic and come down to the city and go back in comfort," said BEST general manager Uttam Khobragade.

Asked about fares, Khobragade said, "These buses will be like aeroplanes on the road and commuters will have to pay an extra fare for these buses, and we are working out details of the fare chart." At present, BEST has 51 air-conditioned buses in its fleet and its starting minimum fare is 13.

It may be recalled that the MSRTC also announced plans on Nov 1 to introduce Kinglong brand of buses for its Mumbai-Pune, Mumbai Nashik and other inter-city routes.

A few more...

http://img125.imageshack.us/img125/2469/mumbaibuildpanocity5szc7.jpg

http://img294.imageshack.us/img294/4775/mumbaipano5cityser6.jpg

Mumbai is getting a complete facelift.
Hopefully, Mumbai will be rated much better among world cities in the next few years.
Thanks to JAI & SUNCITY for the latest pics.

Mumbai is getting a complete facelift.
Hopefully, Mumbai will be rated much better among world cities in the next few years.
Thanks to JAI & SUNCITY for the latest pics.

Roads, Metro, mass scale low cost housing, water, power, airport, port -- some basic things need to be set in place. But things are slowly movimng forward hopefully!

Some Thane City projects...

http://img381.imageshack.us/img381/8846/thanepano2scity1ze2.jpg

http://img483.imageshack.us/img483/9775/thanepano2scity2ze3.jpg

Mumbai updates

http://img472.imageshack.us/img472/8979/mumbaibuidlcollage1swa9.jpg

Mumbai updates

http://img473.imageshack.us/img473/1299/mumbaicollagebuild2suu2.jpg

http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/stories/20061117002810400.htm

Facelift to cities

A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

The commercial capital of India is being redeveloped on a massive scale to ease the pressure on its infrastructure and arrest its decline.

IT is practically impossible to put an exact figure to Mumbai's population. Around 12 million is the official estimate. It is more like 18 million, believe socio-economic analysts. The fact is, the commercial capital of the country is burgeoning at an uncontrollable pace. This has put immense pressure on the city's resources. As such growth cannot be curbed, the city administration has taken some major decisions to improve the infrastructure and civic amenities in the megapolis. Eventually, the administration hopes not only to provide solutions to this massive expansion but also to fulfil its "Vision Mumbai goal" of making Mumbai a world-class city and a top business destination.

There is tremendous pressure on the city's infrastructure, according to officials of the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA), which if not tackled at the earliest, could lead to a decline in the economic growth and the quality of life. Mumbai contributes significantly to the coffers of the State and Central governments. The city pays 50 per cent of the country's direct and indirect taxes. The country cannot afford to let it crumble.

The Authority is responsible for the development of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), which comprises the mega city and the rapidly growing hinterland. The MMRDA says that for the balanced development of the region, it has "embarked on a multi-pronged development programme, which will provide a blueprint for the overall development of the region".

An MMRDA task force has identified three key areas: transport, housing and civic infrastructure.

To begin with, the Mumbai Urban Infrastructure Project (MUIP) will be dealing with improvements in road networks and providing benefits to pedestrians and users of public transport. The emphasis is on an efficient traffic dispersal system, particularly on the arterial roadways such as the North-South road links and East-West connectivity. The MUIP master plan has identified overall improvement of a 462-km road network at an estimated cost of Rs.2,647 crores.

Sixteen flyover projects at important junctions on the Western and Eastern highways and Baba Saheb Ambedkar road have been taken up at a cost of Rs.370 crores. Work has already been awarded for six flyovers. A two-year deadline has been set for the completion of all the projects.

The much-talked-about Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP), which has from time to time run into trouble with the World Bank, has had a few successes in the area of public transport. The objective of this project is to enhance the capacity, efficiency and financial viability of the urban transport system and promote institutional development and capacity building.

The key performance indicators, says the MMRDA, are improved rail travel comfort; pedestrian safety; enhanced rail frequency; reduced delays in road journey; establishment of East-West road connectivity; resettlement of project-affected people (PAPs); and improved technical capacity for planning, traffic management and road maintenance. The estimated cost of the project is Rs.4,526 crores, of which Rs.2,602 crores comes from the World Bank.

Mumbai's pride
Marine Drive, popularly known as the Queen's Necklace, has finally got an image makeover. As part of the Marine Drive Refurbishment Project, the seaface promenade is under renovation.

Another big project, particularly important since the 2005 flooding, is the Rs.30-crore Mithi River Development Project. The Mithi originates from the Vihar lake in north Mumbai and meets the Arabian Sea at Mahim. Over the years, encroachments have almost turned it into a stream of sewage. Congested by garbage and other solid waste, the river overflowed during the torrential rains in July 2005, leading to major flooding in the surrounding areas.

The project has been divided into two phases. Phase One, which includes the desilting, widening and deepening of the river, is almost completed. Phase Two will involve putting up boundary walls, laying service roads and creating a green buffer zone and parks and gardens.

The Mithi project's action plan will also involve cancelling the licences of polluting industries and curbing the discharge of untreated industrial effluents into the river.

Speaking about Mumbai's infrastructure, State Chief Secretary D.K. Sankaran says: "BRIMSTOWAD has got approval for Rs.1,200 crores. Middle Vaitarna is on track and is pending final approval from the Cabinet. [B]Additionally, the Mumbai Metro plans are forging ahead. The Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd sector will soon be tendered out."

While the MMRDA has undertaken a large chunk of the city's redevelopment projects, there are other agencies involved in Mumbai's clean-up. The State government has appointed a task force, which has private participants as well. Mumbai is no longer just the island city. Expanding into the mainland, there is now an entire new city called Navi Mumbai. This area was originally conceived to decongest Mumbai by creating space for commercial activities and residential buildings. The City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra Limited (CIDCO) is primarily responsible for providing the social and physical infrastructure in the new city. CIDCO has been so successful that the 1991 Census recorded a 10 per cent decrease in the population growth rate in Greater Mumbai.

Navi Mumbai was planned as a metro-sized modern urban settlement, with a series of 14 polycentric townships called nodes strung along a mass rapid transit corridor with a central business district at the heart.

It is projected that the area has the capacity to hold a population of four million and provide a million jobs. Additionally, CIDCO is developing Asia's largest Agriculture Produce and Market Complex in Navi Mumbai.

It has constructed 1,200 residential spaces called "intelligent housing", as fibre optic cables have been installed at the time of construction so that Internet and cable connection can be provided on tap.

The corporation has become a pioneer in town planning and development. Apart from Navi Mumbai, it has created new towns in Aurangabad, Waluj, Nashik and Nanded, and these have become urban hubs. The corporation is also involved in setting up a Mass Rapid Transit System along with the Indian Railways in Navi Mumbai. It constructed 15 railway stations on modern lines, which have become landmarks in Navi Mumbai and its surrounding areas. CIDCO is offering consultancy services to the Chhattisgarh government to develop a new Raipur, and create new townships in Chandigarh and Visakhaptanam.

The State government is planning to upgrade and make cities such as Pune, Aurangabad, Nasik and Nagpur investor-friendly.

Although less than 200 km from Mumbai, Pune, the second largest city in the State, has never developed at the same rate as Mumbai. Although it has a strong manufacturing, automobile and engineering presence, the city never found a place on the industry map.

That is, until the Information Technology boom happened. Thanks to its strong educational set-up and pleasant climate, the city began to match Bangalore, the Silicon Valley of India, but soon began to face the problem of poor infrastructure. Although investors may not be rushing to set up base here, the ongoing massive residential construction indicates that Pune is a sought-after place.

During the past year, several flyover projects were taken up in many parts of the city. With Pune planning to host the Commonwealth Youth Games in 2008, there is a massive effort to ramp up the city.

Nagpur, the winter capital of Maharashtra, has evolved into an efficient and well managed city thanks to the foresight of a few bureaucrats. The eventual aim is to make it a central hub for industry by pushing its main advantage - its central location. The city has plenty of room for residential and commercial expansion. An SEZ that is to come up at Butibori is expected to attract knowledge-based, textile, fruit processing, paper, machinery and consumer durable industries.

Aurangabad is attempting to become more than a tourist attraction. Although auto manufacturer Bajaj Auto and electronics major Videocon set up shop there more than a decade ago, it is only recently that Czech automakers Skoda set up a plant near the city. Unemployment is a massive problem in Aurangabad. The government has proposed to set up a SEZ at Shendre near the city.

Nashik is now well known as the Napa Valley of India. Grape-growing and wine-making are bringing prosperity to this cantonment town. Efforts are on to enhance the development of the horticulture industry in this region.

Mumbai updates

http://img463.imageshack.us/img463/1549/evenmormumbaiagainyf1.jpg

Some cool collection buildings all over Mumbai!

I like the ones in Thane.

Some latest up-dates of the larger projects of 30+ storey buildings would be welcome though.

Global Pagoda under construction - distant view
photo copyright amolkataria

http://img485.imageshack.us/img485/7573/globalpagodaamolkatariatv4.jpg

http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/5541/newreliancecorporateheadc1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

that building doesnt look too tall does it? dissapointing design overall, looks very plain vanilla

http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/5541/newreliancecorporateheadc1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Quite intersting.

That is the Reliance Corporate Park NOCIL - Ghansoli, Mumbai

http://www.meinhardtgroup.com/content/Projects.asp?ProjectID=3424&SectorID=-1&CountryID=96&Keywords=

Reliance Industries Limited is India's largest private sector enterprise. The Group is developing its iconic corporate park at Navi Mumbai which will integrate all its corporate offices, commercial developments and residential zones. Spread over an area of 522 acres, it would be one of the biggest developments of its kind in the country.
Meinhardt has been appointed as the design consultants for the development of 2nd and 3rd phases of the project. The total built up area in the phase 2 and 3 is in excess of 1,500,000 sqft. The first phase of the project is already under construction.


_____________________________________________


I had seen a proposed energy centre HQ here

http://www.siteenvirodesign.com/proj.reliance.php

http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/1158/relianceenergyhqfn1.jpg

Some updates...

http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/8264/mumbaicbuildcollage11shd0.jpg

the second website shows the facility next to the western express highway. thats certainly not new bombay. maybe they have two office complexes coming up, or one never got off the ground

The building shown as the Reliance Energy headquarters is actually the old BSES building off the Western Express Highway. Reliance Energy bought over BSES a couple of years back.
I didn't know that this building has become the corporate HQ for Reliance Energy.

The second pic is that of reliance energy...Anil Ambani's Group...The Headquaters at NOCIL i think is of RIL Mukesh Ambani's Group....

vinayak7 and Bombay Dreams

Thanks for the updates!

The building shown as the Reliance Energy headquarters is actually the old BSES building off the Western Express Highway. Reliance Energy bought over BSES a couple of years back.
I didn't know that this building has become the corporate HQ for Reliance Energy.
The details did mention accomodating an existing building. What does that building look like now? Are these plans for refurbishment of that building and the entire complex?

Here are some more renderings of the Reliance Energy headquarters

http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/7861/01cn6.jpg

http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/8095/02rx4.jpg

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/1950/022ad8.jpg

http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/5439/5iu9.jpg

Some more updates

http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/883/mumbaibuildingpano23spn6.jpg

US firm to invest $1bn in Mumbai slum redevelopment projects
http://www.business-standard.com/compindustry/storypage.php?leftnm=1&subLeft=1&chklogin=N&autono=264955&tab=r

New York-based Trikona Capital will invest one billion dollars in slum redevelopment projects in Mumbai city. Trikona will develop a total of 100 million sq ft of residential space as part of its “city rejuvenation project” and has tied up with Lokhandwala Builders for its first project in central Mumbai, company managing director and co-founder Aashish Kalra said.

This is part of the $ 2.5 billion the company plans to invest in the Indian residential sector over the next three and a half years. “We expect to bring in a further one billion dollar each year after that,” Kalra added.

The 1.37 million sq ft project is slated to start by early 2007 and completed by 2009 and is valued at approximately $ 100 million. He said that as part of the redevelopment project, the group’s infrastructure fund will invest in building basic infrastructure around the projects.

Kalra said that the group has also identified around 10 million sq ft that it would invest in developing in partnership with local developers and is looking for more partners.

Slum redevelopment projects are typically low income housing. In return for developing these projects, the state government gives the developers the right to develop additional higher income housing, either on the same plot or elsewhere. Mumbai has a shortage of around 950,000 such housing units, according to a McKinsey report.

It would be nice if either of the ambani brothers decides to build the tallest building in india as their company headquaters......

the present REL facility sure looks smaller than the one they are proposing. unless they have loads of space around the old bses building

World's largest slum project to take off (http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1846488,000600010004.htm)

Madhurima Nandy and Gigil Varghese

Mumbai, November 17, 2006

Finally, the world's largest slum rehabilitation project is all set to take off. Global tenders worth Rs 7500 crore will be invited for the makeover of Dharavi, the 535-acre slum pocket, by November-end.

On Friday, the state government approved the draft Development Control Regulations (DCR) which has been formulated specially for the Dharavi project. Asia's largest slum Dharavi, home to more than 3 lakh people, will metamorphose into a swanky residential and commercial hub in the future.

Speaking to HT, Officer on special duty, Dharavi Redevelopment Project, IS Chahal, "The Chief Minister's approval removed the final hurdle to begin the project which will about seven years to complete."

On November 21, there is a final meeting, which will finalise the various clauses that will be incorporated in the 90-pg tender document. International developers from 16 cities across the world like the US, UK, Dubai, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and Netherlands will be bidding for this project. The project begins after 90 days from the date of issuing the tender document.

The approved revised DCR for Dharavi is good news for developers, which has raised the Floor Space Index (FSI) cap to 4. Chahal however argued that more than developers, Dharavi will benefit from this.

"The raised FSI will ensure that the Transfer of Developmental Rights which is generated from the project is consumed entirely within Dharavi both for the rehabilitation and the market sale components. Otherwise, the TDR would be used to the north of the Dharavi, maybe in Bandra or Juhu."

The basic idea of redeveloping Dharavi is that the developers will construct houses and by way of compensation, he gets a portion of the land for commercial development.

An amendment to the existing DCR 33(10) would make Dharavi the first project to rehabilitate industrial units within the area. The builder would also get an additional, uniform 1.3 incentive for every square feet that is developed, be it a municipal school or fire station.

The builder would then be able to sell this off as a saleable component in the open market. This incentive would cover not only slum tenements but also other kinds of residential, industrial, commercial properties and structures like fire stations, schools and municipal ward offices.

The redevelopment of Dharavi is crucial to the development of Mumbai, according to town planners. What is now a haphazard mess of hutments will be neatly divided into five sectors wherein each sector would have additional amenities like gardens and recreational space on their layout. Each sector would be given out to a consortium of builders who would then develop every aspect of it.

Once the project begins, the Dharavi area will turn into a massive construction site right in the heart of the city. Property experts said that the large-scale development will hugely raise the property rates of the area.

Anuj Puri, Managing Director of Trammel Crow Mehraj, property consultants said, "By conservative estimates, the property rates would be between Rs 8,000 – 10,000 per sq ft. This is because of its proximity to BKC and for its planned development."

Puri also believes that the area also has a lot of potential for retail and entertainment facilities.

That's great news for Dharavi!

Also im interested in the Hotel & Convention Centre in the Bandra Kurla Complex. Is this being built as we speak? Any pics? progress?

Thanks to anyone who can up-date me and confirm.

lets hope the dharavi residents dont get put in some leaking , no bogs thin walled, concrete prison.
Thats wht we did here when we re housed working class communaties.
HK & Singapore did it well.

Well, at the least they will make it an art-deco styled leaking, no bogs thin walled, concrete prison.


I joke I joke...

Well, at the least they will make it an art-deco styled leaking, no bogs thin walled, concrete prison.


I joke I joke...

Tee hee
hopefully it will be an asian consortiom who gets it.
Westerners, we're crap at that sort of thing.Or maybe our working classes are traditionaly more reticant

http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/8677/30226184655431bba45brm0.jpg
^ View of an Legend Tower, Sept 06, from lucaskt @ Flickr

http://img154.imageshack.us/img154/2253/thelegend1ev9.jpg

Hu promises help to give Mumbai a `modern look` (http://www.business-standard.com/economy/storypage.php?tab=r&autono=265760&subLeft=1&leftnm=3)

Visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao today assured all assistance to “give a modern look to Mumbai and encourage Chinese investments in Maharashtra”.

The chief minister said 71 special economic zones (SEZs) were being set up in Maharashtra. “We are following the example of China on this issue”, Deshmukh said.

He called upon Chinese industrialists to invest in Maharashtra in areas like IT and biotechnology.

Briefing Hu on the development projects in Maharashtra, Deshmukh said the state was in the ‘number one’ position in the country.

“Increase of trade between China and Maharashtra would benefit India and China”, Hu said adding that there were already some Chinese projects in Maharashtra, specially around Mumbai.

“More Chinese businessmen would be encouraged to invest in Maharashtra in near future”, he assured.

Hu promises help to give Mumbai a `modern look` (http://www.business-standard.com/economy/storypage.php?tab=r&autono=265760&subLeft=1&leftnm=3)

Thats nice of him.The subtext is that presumably he thinks Mumbai is in need of one...
Just U wait there Mr Who in 20 years time they'll be so many Im Peis' , Jean Nouvels',Cesar Pelis', Norman Fosters', Ziahid whatshername's & Santiago Calatravas' in Mumbai that all the new generation of Mr & Mrs Whos 'll coming to Mumbai to get tips on 'modern look.'
I. I. I .

Sahara Star (Ex Centaur Hotel)

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/6636/saharastarhotelmumbaiun9.jpg

The makeover (from Sahara website)

Sahara Star: Probably going to be India 's best hotel situated near Mumbai Airport

Over 350 rooms ( including Exclusive Suites & Presidential Suites)

Structural Glazing with 2 lac sq.ft glass

The Central Courtyard covers an area of 55,000 sq. ft is the world's biggest pillar-less Dome made out of tensile membrane , a marvel of mechanism of Stainless steel

Cuisines include Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Malay, Sea Food, Continental, Lebanese, Arabic cuisines & Indian

The business center has spacious conference rooms, business lounge & exclusive chambers

A Preview Theater with capacity of 100 people

The hotel shall also have a spa, Gym, Restaurant, Card Room, Snooker, Pool Table, Squash, Saloon, Yoga room, Aerobics, Floatation Tank rooms etc.

Sahara Club Royale room & private dining room

3 level basement parking, accommodating more than 650 cars

That's quite an upgrade.

Isn't the Centaur makeover already well underway?

Isn't the Centaur makeover already well underway?

Yes.

http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/8677/30226184655431bba45brm0.jpg
^ View of an Legend Tower, Sept 06, from lucaskt @ Flickr

http://img154.imageshack.us/img154/2253/thelegend1ev9.jpg

Why does it scrae me that a building that big has already got a colour swatch on it?
Hey Mr Jai didnt you go off to boot camp or something?

Love the Hotel make over, its quite unique!

This will be a great a great addition to thhe airport getting its long due re-vamp.

Hey Dreadthecontrols, waht do u mean about the colour Swatch of legend tower?

Love the Hotel make over, its quite unique!

This will be a great a great addition to thhe airport getting its long due re-vamp.

Hey Dreadthecontrols, waht do u mean about the colour Swatch of legend tower?

On the 3rd floor on the left they've painted the blue & white. Presumably to see if it works, or?
Why does that scare me ? Shouldnt they know these things b4 hand?

On the 3rd floor on the left they've painted the blue & white. Presumably to see if it works, or?


It's standard practice I believe.

Another project. from rspindia.net. Didn't find in the Raheja site.

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/3734/rspmumbaraheja1ml7.jpg

On the 3rd floor on the left they've painted the blue & white. Presumably to see if it works, or?
Why does that scare me ? Shouldnt they know these things b4 hand?

they do it to see if the right shade of blue and white are being used. both the colours are being used in this building so they know what is the gerneral colour they want. just testing the shades

Another project. from rspindia.net. Didn't find in the Raheja site.

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/3734/rspmumbaraheja1ml7.jpg
Great find Sun,

Looks to be exactly 40 storeys
Hey Mr Jai didnt you go off to boot camp or something?
I did indeed :) But even my love for the Corps can't suppress my love for architecture :)

Another project. from rspindia.net. Didn't find in the Raheja site.

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/3734/rspmumbaraheja1ml7.jpg

Another great find Mr S.
Is it actually u/c then .looks v exciting esp the glass cladding triangle in the pic...
BTW any info on the 80 story commercial tower coming up ? Mumbai trade centre or somthing?

really like the RSP building, specially because it has a glassy look

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1855267,000600010004.htm

More demolitions to make way for Marine Drive beautification
Uma Upadhyaya
Mumbai, November 28, 2006

Not only the 19 bungalows opposite Mantralaya housing the state's ministers would have to make way for the second phase of Marine Drive beautification, many more demolitions are likely to take place next year.

With the first phase of beautification underway with revamping of the 3.5 kms stretch involving construction of a new parapet walls, new tiles and construction of landscaped oasis with greenery at various locations, the second phase of the plan that is likely to begin early next year will see quite a number of demolitions.

Commissioner of MMRDA, T Chandrashekhar told HT, "The plan for the second phase is still not approved by the government. There are many demolitions and we would also have to rehabilitate people in the process. I would not like to reveal much before the plan is cleared."

He added that the first phase of the project, which is underway, will be completed by February 2007 after which the second phase would begin after getting the necessary approvals.

It is not only ministers who are pleased with the bungalows, various residents associations too are keen about the plan of demolishing the bungalows.

According to Swarn Kohli, president of Nariman Point Churchgate Citizens Association, "We have been working on this for quite a long time now. The government has encroached upon public land and the bungalows have been constructed on the plot meant for a recreation ground and a green area. We have been taking it up since 1998 and have even written to the CM quite a number of times. It will be a good thing that bungalows will make way for open space meant for the public."

The second phase involves beautifying the Queen's Necklace right upto Chowpatty that would involve demolition of many structures including the Birla Krida Kendra, the public auditorium owned by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) at Chowpatty.

"An amphitheatre that would be open to the public is planned at that place. Many shops too would have to be rehabilitated. Also all the food-stalls on and around the beach would come under one food plaza," said a MMRDA official. He also added that completion of phase two of the plan would take quite a considerable time due to large number of demolitions and rehabilitations.

The entire beautification of Marine Drive at the cost of around Rs 100 crore is underway. The first phase started in September this year and is expected to be completed in February 2007.

Phase II:

* Small amphitheatre at the NCPA end of the road.
* New garden in front of the Mantralaya and Vidhan Sabha.
* Restoration of the buildings standing along the sea-face. Street furniture and heritage plaques to be provided.
*Subways to be constructed at four pedestrian crossings along with toilets and drinking water facilities.
*An open air amphitheatre at Chowpatty, with provisions for the existing bhelpuri vendors.

I like to RSP building alot too!

The design is very impressive.

I guess the "test" painting of Legend Tower id normal. Suppose you would test the paint of how colour looks on any wall.

Glad the Marine Drive make over is going well. Any pictures would be most welcome.

Very nice. sleek, glassy, modern & massive. This is what exactly Bombay needs. Hundreds of Towers around this height 38f-42f popping up. These environmentalist are bunch of jokers and idiots with half knowledge. Just show them this front facade & see how greenary is protected & maintained despite having highrises.

Another project: RSP

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/3734/rspmumbaraheja1ml7.jpg

K Rahjea Universal has updated their project, Atlantis, off Worli Naka, Worli. From this:
http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/4912/rahejaatlantislarge7kg.jpg

To this:
http://img133.imageshack.us/img133/286/rahejaatlantislarge178ftj8.jpg

It's grown taller too... from the original 35 to 40 stories in height. Cool. All in all a nice redesign

^^

The green band looks kind of peculiar. I think it's taller now.

BTW that proposed Raheja Tower of 180 m height will have 24 + 18 + 3 = 45 floors for apartments.

The habitable floors start at 25m.

Its a rather low resolution render. Perhaps the green bands are plants? I have to admit though, while the new one is taller, the previous design was a bit classier

Its a rather low resolution render. Perhaps the green bands are plants? I have to admit though, while the new one is taller, the previous design was a bit classier
If the central arc shaped beams spanned the entire width of the building and make the building elliptical, it would have looks better than either the old or the new designs. They could have provided these beams on every floor with a little deck for each apartment. They could leave it open-air or better yet, enclose it with glass for safety and weather proofing, giving them each a green house in the process, where they can have plants or a vegetable garden.

Sahara Star (Ex Centaur Hotel)

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/6636/saharastarhotelmumbaiun9.jpg

The makeover (from Sahara website)

Sahara Star: Probably going to be India 's best hotel situated near Mumbai Airport

Over 350 rooms ( including Exclusive Suites & Presidential Suites)

Structural Glazing with 2 lac sq.ft glass

The Central Courtyard covers an area of 55,000 sq. ft is the world's biggest pillar-less Dome made out of tensile membrane , a marvel of mechanism of Stainless steel

Cuisines include Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Malay, Sea Food, Continental, Lebanese, Arabic cuisines & Indian

The business center has spacious conference rooms, business lounge & exclusive chambers

A Preview Theater with capacity of 100 people

The hotel shall also have a spa, Gym, Restaurant, Card Room, Snooker, Pool Table, Squash, Saloon, Yoga room, Aerobics, Floatation Tank rooms etc.

Sahara Club Royale room & private dining room

3 level basement parking, accommodating more than 650 cars
That's simply beautiful. Both the structure and the amenities.

Another construction update, pictures from last month.

Former Simplex Mills being transformed into Planet Godrej
http://img326.imageshack.us/img326/931/planetgodrejnew2qx.jpg
http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/9589/311447557a4a41d7c93o1ddbp0.jpg
http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/4001/3114474706a5d20cdb6o1dctz5.jpg
http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/6935/1vr4.jpg
^ from mobile_geographies @ flickr

It's nice to see they've started work onn Planet Godrej's outer cladding. Can we expect all of it to be finished by mid-07?

Another one... this time DSK Durgamata Rising!
http://img121.imageshack.us/img121/6618/05dskdurgmata4m2bg.jpg
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/2723/308426180aad9aa7a92900ajt3.jpg
^ from Nrip Nihalani @ flickr

Get a load of DSK's proportions! It looks a lot taller than the 32F it is.

BTW, with the frame pretty much complete (from the pic u posted), can the outer covering be far off?

Jai: you are the man!..thanks for the update:)

Thanks for the up-date.

Glad to see things progressing well.

I prefer the original Atlantis than the new render but its not bad thou. Those green parts look like balconcies with trelasis.

Up-dates need on Imperial Towers (SD Towers).

Get a load of DSK's proportions! It looks a lot taller than the 32F it is.

BTW, with the frame pretty much complete (from the pic u posted), can the outer covering be far off?

Here's a larger size of the same pic. It does look taller than the thirty storey tower behind it.

http://img377.imageshack.us/img377/6182/cuffeparadenripmgu6.jpg

Another view
photo copyright anappaiha

http://img450.imageshack.us/img450/7224/mumbaisunsetcuffeparadenx3.jpg

Lake Primrose, Powai

http://img471.imageshack.us/img471/2631/lakeprimrosetoismf2.jpg

Ekta Terraces, Kandivali

http://img389.imageshack.us/img389/3320/ektaterracestoisir5.jpg

Great update - the tower looks very slim.

Jai.......................Yes. the old design had more class BUT Bombay needs modern sleeky designs. It already has enough 'colonial' class in Powai thanks to hiranandanis & Hafeez.

Sun.....................Wow. From 35F to 40F to 45F. Not bad at all. This is why Bombay is Bombay. Concrete making way to more aluminum & glass is a welcome sign in the form of 'redesign'. & I'll take this & 'RSP' design any given day over blocky 'planet godrej' if you know what I mean.

Atlantis, off Worli Naka, Worli.
To this:
http://img133.imageshack.us/img133/286/rahejaatlantislarge178ftj8.jpg
from the original 35 to 40 stories in height

Mumbai to get 1,080-room hospitality precinct (http://www.teluguportal.net/modules/news/article.php?storyid=23132)
Mumbai, Nov 28 (IANS) A Mumbai realtor and an international hotel chain are to create what could be India's largest single hospitality precinct here comprising five hotels with 1,080 rooms and a convention centre to accommodate 5,000 people.

Nirmal Lifestyles announced Tuesday it had entered into a management agreement with Accor, one of the world's largest operators of hotels, to develop and operate the project at suburban Mulund.

"The project promises one of the most sophisticated developments in the country," a Nirmal Lifestyles release said.

The project will be part of large integrated township the company is developing in Mulund, which has earned the sobriquet "prince of the suburbs". German town-planners Carter & Crown have laid out the project.

The hospitality precinct will feature two Sofitel hotels with 250 and 200 rooms respectively, a Novotel hotel with 250 rooms, "Grand Mercure Residences" with 180 units of serviced apartments, and an Ibis hotel with 200 rooms.

Renowned architect Hafeez Contractor has designed the two Sofitel hotels, which have been planned by to be truly iconic as they seem to float in the sky above three structural towers. :banana: Another feature of the hotel complex will be its proximity to a shopping mall and entertainment complex of over three million sq ft, parking for over 2,500 cars and a rooftop landscaped garden spread over seven acres.

Commenting on the choice of operator, Dharmesh Jain, chairman and MD of Nirmal Lifestyles Group, said: "This complements our contribution to Mumbai's vision of becoming a world city. It is an initiation towards building the largest retail and hospitality mega structures in the country."

(not related to ^^ ), Maker Towne, Bandra Kurla

Designed by Morhogenisis Architects, Maker Towne is a mixed use development with offices, luxury hotel, shopping malls, service apartments, 10 screen multiplex and recreational areas.
http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/3486/makertowne1242b395gk0.jpg
http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/6999/makertowne2242c0a5kw2.jpg
http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/8537/makertowne3242ca88ud5.jpg
http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/7821/makertowne4242d45bke1.jpg

For the two Sofitel towers, could it be this, or is this project something else?

http://www.hafeezcontractor.com/retail/nirmallifestyle/nirmallifestyle.html

WOW, this is great! I like Maker Towne.

About time too! I welcome more development in Bandra Kurla Complex as its an excellent opportunity there being in the middle of the city.

Any pictures on the Diamond Bourse anyone as its a geat building. The SEBI building looks great.

The project in Mulund sounds great too but Ive read that a Sofitel & Novotel Hotels are being built in Bandra Kurla too?

For the two Sofitel towers, could it be this, or is this project something else?

http://www.hafeezcontractor.com/retail/nirmallifestyle/nirmallifestyle.html

Good catch! The project is for Nirmal and is in Mulund and does have two suspended buildings
http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/3528/3138ed6fs0.jpg
http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/1180/1139667rc2.jpg

Honestly though, after that first 'hmm ok' factor, it doesn't look that good, and looks progressively less appealing the more you look at it. I do hope this is an initial rendering. This project was posted on HC's website several months ago

JP Morgan unit invests $60 mln in Mumbai project

http://www.ndtvprofit.com/homepage/news.asp?id=279244

JP Morgan Chase 's Principal Real Estate Investments has invested $60 million in a residential project in Mumbai with Lodha Builders, a joint statement by the companies said on Wednesday.

"JP Morgan is very excited about this partnership with Lodha Builders. We have invested significant time and effort in understanding the market and the key players in the market," Vice-President Tyler Goodwin said in the statement.

"We are very happy to partner with JP Morgan for one of our premium projects, as this gives us the ability to access resources to fuel our growth plans, which will make us amongst the top five real estate developers in the country by 2008," said Abhinandan Lodha, director, finance, Lodha Builders, in the statement.

Work on Navi Mumbai SEZ will take off by March 2007
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1068071


Groundwork at one of the two sprawling special economic zones (SEZs) being set up by the Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance group near Mumbai will begin by March, 2007. The Navi Mumbai SEZ, where land acquisition is more than 50% complete, will be the first off the blocks, but the 10,000 hectare Mumbai SEZ (also called Maha Mumbai) being set up across the sea from Mumbai harbour in Raigad district, will not kick off till late 2007 or early 2008 since land acquisition is expected to take that kind of time.

According to sources close to the project team, which includes close confidantes of Mukesh Ambani and former state government officials, the government will accord it final approvals soon after all the land (around 4,000 hectares) is handed over by Maharashtra’s City and Industrial Development Corporation (Cidco), a joint venture partner with Reliance in the Navi Mumbai SEZ. A government notification is needed to extend tariff benefits to the SEZ. No work can begin before that. In the case of the Maha Mumbai SEZ, the state government has only recently published the section 4 notification for land acquisition, and the process will take all of 12 months to complete.

The “horizontal” work for laying the infrastructure, including the drainage system, water mains and reservoirs, piped gas and a 2,000 mw power plant, will be initiated once the notification is received.

The SEZ will accommodate only environment-friendly export industries such as garments, gems and jewellery, biotechnology, IT-enabled services, healthcare and financial services, among other things.

While the marketing of the SEZ to potential businesses will begin only after the infrastructure is more or less ready, Reliance expects the big global consulting firms such as Deloitte, PwC and E&Y to act as channel partners in this process. Officials claim that they have already received several proposals from prospective investors, but will entertain these only after they have something to show by way of infrastructure.

The initial capital investment in the Navi Mumbai SEZ and the Maha Mumbai SEZ is billed at about Rs 30,000 crore. As and when industries set up bases in the SEZs, the total capital spend could soar close to Rs 300,000 crore over a decade.

The two projects are being personally overseen by Anand Jain, a close confidante of Mukesh Ambani. Sanjay Punkhia, a director who was closely involved with the Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge Centre (now with Anil Ambani), is another key project official who reports to Jain directly. Former senior Maharashtra government officials such as Vinay Bansal and Ajit Warty are key strategists in the mammoth implementation effort.

Cidco’s big success in the 1970s and 1980s was the creation of the twin city of Navi Mumbai, which has several nodes. The Navi Mumbai SEZ is its second most ambitious project near Mumbai, and is envisaged as an extension to the country’s largest commercial metro. Cidco, however, is not involved in the Mumbai SEZ in Raigad.

The Reliance group has already involved Jurong Town Planners in the SEZ projects. Though the two SEZs will not be the only ones coming up over the next few years, the group is confident of success.

“Businesses would like to be in the place where the action is. Nobody can afford to avoid India,” said an official. Or Mumbai, one may add.

JP Morgan unit invests $60 mln in Mumbai project

http://www.ndtvprofit.com/homepage/news.asp?id=279244

all good news.cant understand why they dont allow fdi in other areas its so obviously benificial.
But unlike everyone else at the moment i feel bullish about bharat.Each day theres a bit of news that gives the impression that the country is starting to take its position seriously. Dunno maybe i'll be more pessamistic next week...
One thing though.The world economic language is not crore... I wish they'ed stop quoting figures in crore ( the SEZ proj)or at least give the million equivelancy.Its a fucking time waster trying to convert it.So many bloody noughts.(1 crore 10 mill, right?)

Oberoi Skyz:

This article says its a twin tower of 200 metres and invitation only project.

http://www.agencyfaqs.com/news/stories/2006/08/14/15737.html


Hi


Found some long awaited news on Oberoi Skyz!

Its from the HT Epaper (http://epaper.hindustantimes.com), from 12 November (actually, its rather old news!) Previous month's archives aren't accessable unless you have a subscription, but thankfully omnipotent Googleji has a cache of the article (http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:BC9FVMi-72EJ:epaper.hindustantimes.com/artMailDisp.aspx%3Farticle%3D12_11_2006_001_006%26typ%3D0%26pub%3D264&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=3).

8,000 sq ft flat in Worli? Skyz the limit (http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:BC9FVMi-72EJ:epaper.hindustantimes.com/artMailDisp.aspx%3Farticle%3D12_11_2006_001_006%26typ%3D0%26pub%3D264&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=3)
Project’s 44 apartments being snapped up at Rs 20 cr — and rising

Gurbir Singh
Mumbai

THERE’S NO evidence of construction on the dusty five-acre plot in Worli, where an old GlaxoSmithKline factory once stood. There’s no piling, not even environmental clearance for the super-exclusive twin towers that will rise here.

But ever-booming Mumbai does not really need proof of construction. The flats in the twin towers planned at the Glaxo site on Dr Annie Besant Road will cost you Rs 20 crore — today.

Think over the price. But don’t think too long. Tomorrow, it might be Rs 25 crore.

Bookings opened a few weeks ago at Rs 19,000 per sq ft, and India’s who’s who lined up to grab a piece of Skyz, as Mumbai’s newest towers are called. They will rise 65 floors, but with only 44 apartments.

So far, 15 apartments have been sold. The last sale was at Rs 25,000 per sq ft, and it could keep rising. Vikas Oberoi, co-promoter of the Skyz project, said by the time the project ends, the price could touch Rs 50,000 per sq ft.

Each apartment will be bungalow-sized at 8,000 sq ft and will have five bedrooms. Each will be a duplex, spread across two floors.

“We wanted a swimming pool for each apartment, but the civic body turned it down as there is a water shortage in the city,” explained Oberoi.

What he did manage to clear is two towers-on-stilts that will start 15 floors above the ground. So every apartment gets a view of the Arabian Sea. One buyer has booked two adjacent apartments: 16,000 sq ft for Rs 40 crore.

The list of owners isn’t exactly public, but it includes names like Kishore Biyani, chief of the Pantaloon Group and Enam Financial’s Akash Bhansali.

“I could also go for two. It’s a great project,” Biyani told HT. “Vicky Oberoi is a friend. I told him, when you open bookings, I want to be the first.” But Skyz is not for open booking. Entry is by invitation only.

AWESOME TRIO
http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/4697/174du5.jpg

So the facts we know for sure about Oberoi Skyz:
- It is officially confirmed as a Twin Tower project
- Each tower is 65-storeys
- Each tower has 15-storey stilts. Does that mean total height is 80-storeys (65+15?) or is the number factored into the given height? We won't know until we see the rendering, but some Indian builders include stilts in total building height (as is the standard), but some don't to downplay the total height.
- Already pre-booking rooms. Seems like they will have no problem satisfying demands, so it looks like it will be built.


Also, that image that they included in the article is interesting. It shows three major projects in the Worli area. Looks like right near where the Beaumonde towers are being built, there is going to be Oberoi Skyz, and a K. Raheja Corp project at the Texmaco (http://headlines.sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=13378067) property (their website lists it as a future project (http://www.krahejacorp.com/worli-mumbai.html) with no further informtaion.) Seems Worli will have quite the skyline in the coming years. Here's a photo for reference:
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/2510/2og0.jpg
^ The Oberoi Skyz twins would be built right near that telecom tower in the middle. The Rahjea tower would be to our left of that.

Note that the Hindustan Time's graphic is not an accurate rendering of the project (it was reported earlier that it was somewhat rocket shaped.) For clarification, here's a real rendering the Beaumonde project versus the graphic:
http://img294.imageshack.us/img294/2607/shethbeaumondebldg1slrf6.jpg vs. http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/8881/2ro6.jpg

Because it is so "exclusive", we probably won't get renderings until construction actually begins... :ohno:

Cheers,
Jai

the glaxo facility has been fully demolished this past month and shutters are up. so i guess work on skyz has begun

And thus a new HK is born

Note that the Hindustan Time's graphic is not an accurate rendering of the project (it was reported earlier that it was somewhat rocket shaped.) For clarification, here's a real rendering the Beaumonde project versus the graphic:
http://img294.imageshack.us/img294/2607/shethbeaumondebldg1slrf6.jpg vs. http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/8881/2ro6.jpg

Because it is so "exclusive", we probably won't get renderings until construction actually begins... :ohno:

Cheers,
Jai

Jai, I am having a copy of DVD walkthrough of beau monde as well as its brochure. The perspective is the same as you posted. The walkthrough is really nice. Architectural Planing is by P & T Consultants Pte Ltd, Singapore and Ornamental landscaping by Site Concepts International Pte Ltd, Singapore.

Looks like "consent" was given by mpcb.

http://mpcb.mah.nic.in/consent/consentoct06.php

And thus a new HK is born
Classic post. Quoting for posterity. :cool:

looks like those green things on Raheja Atlantis are plants?

http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/6091/rahejaacropolisnewom6.jpg

It looks lot more than 26 + 3 floors!

Yup... definately 40 stories

The following u/c projects have been mentioned in passing before, but I don't think it was ever formally reported here with floor counts. Posting below for posterity's sake:

Nahar Builder's Sarvodaya Parshwanath Towers, Mulund: two towers of 40 stories each
http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/9954/12c9791bwj3.jpg

^ It was formerly posted here as "Sarovar Darshan"... on research, I don't think that is the correct name

~~~~~~

Kalpataru Aura, Ghatkopar (West): 20 stories
http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/7583/auraperspective33331delr1.jpg

Good catch! The project is for Nirmal and is in Mulund and does have two suspended buildings
http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/3528/3138ed6fs0.jpg
http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/1180/1139667rc2.jpg

Honestly though, after that first 'hmm ok' factor, it doesn't look that good, and looks progressively less appealing the more you look at it. I do hope this is an initial rendering. This project was posted on HC's website several months ago
Hmm... I found something that may cast some doubt on if that is the same project, or if so, if that is the final rendering...

In the Mumbai Project Update III thread, this project was posted. It has since been deleted from HC's website:

Jain Hotel & Mall, Mulund
http://img300.imageshack.us/img300/1861/jainhotelmall1ah.jpg

Recycled a cancelled concept? Redesign? Who knows. We'll just have to see I guess

Guys! Another lightbulb went off in my head...

You know how that graphic from the TOI article last page showed the locations of three major projects at Worli
http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/4697/174du5.jpg

The 3 projects being...

1. The Oberoi Skyz twin towers
[no rendering]

2. The Sheth Beaumonde triplets
http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/4581/shethbeaumondebldg1slvr9.jpg

3. And a "mysterious" K. Raheja Corp Project (http://www.krahejacorp.com/worli-mumbai.html)?


....

Well, we're all blind, cuz...

WE JUST POSTED THE RENDERING ON PAGE 24!

:wallbash:

Presenting the second biggest project at Worli!

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/3734/rspmumbaraheja1ml7.jpg

:banana: :banana: :banana:

-----==--=--==-----

And for perspective, here are some of the other projects also u/c in Worli
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/1923/rahejaatlantislarge178fzw4.jpg http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/5472/fourseasons22xt3tm.jpg http://img105.imageshack.us/img105/7771/rahejalegendlarge6kn3dq.jpg
http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/1787/perspective3pl9.jpg http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/9798/horizon37c80c6in1up0.jpg http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/2180/2dm3.jpg
Imagine seeing that skyline from the BWSL Bridge in 5 years!

-Jai

Imagine seeing that skyline from the BWSL Bridge in 5 years!

-Jai


Yup agreed...that would be sure a sight to watch.

Any idea on the relative location of Raheja Atlantis in Worli?

Siddhivinayak Horizon is completed.

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/2222/siddhivinayakhorizon126si1.jpg

Kalpataru Horizon is topped out

http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/9059/kalpataruhorizon661oth1hy9.jpg

and so is the Four Seasons Hotel

The following u/c projects have been mentioned in passing before, but I don't think it was ever formally reported here with floor counts. Posting below for posterity's sake:

Nahar Builder's Sarvodaya Parshwanath Towers, Mulund: two towers of 40 stories each
http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/9954/12c9791bwj3.jpg

^ It was formerly posted here as "Sarovar Darshan"... on research, I don't think that is the correct name

~~~~~~



As per google cache it is Sarvodaya Heights

from www.nahargroup.co.in

But Nahar Groups website is a silly one - all flash but not much info. Well at least they have a website.

Hmm... can any Mumbai people confirm what is the right name?

Siddhivinayak Horizon is completed.

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/2222/siddhivinayakhorizon126si1.jpg
That's good news. I wish they'd update their website to reflect the fact

Is this building in Mumbai?
found it here (http://www.sejalglass.com/projects.html)

http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/7171/airtelbuildingsehalglassf1.jpg

the auto makes me think its in bombay. the familiar black and yellow

Swish!

We need proper up-dates of the above completed projects please.

Where is Siddhivinayak Horizon located in Mumbai?

How is the 4 Seasons hotel coming along as well as Mirage etc?

From our very own Jai

Reliance

http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/27068/a-peek-into-ambanis-dream-house.html

An attempt to screen capture but not very successful or accurate - but you get the idea of the shape

http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/1725/reliancetowerab9.jpg

^^

BombayBoy>

is it one of these? There is a third crane at a lower height too.

http://img93.imageshack.us/img93/7810/mumbaiskylinesunilshabahh9.jpg

^^^Hell the sketch is definitely more than 40 floors!

Here is the article accompanying the videoclip:
A peek into Ambani's dream house (http://www.ibnlive.com/news/a-peek-into-ambanis-dream-house/27068-7.html)New Delhi: Imagine living in a 22-storied building, with two swimming pools, two basements for parking cars and a 100-seater home theatre!

And if that seems a tad less, top it all with a helipad! All of that for a neat sum of Rs 120 crores. Well, that's where the dream ends and reality begins.

While most people can just imagine this, Mukesh Ambani is the man who's going to own it. It's the dream house of the man who owns a $20 billion company.

Located at the Alta Mount Road in Mumbai, the building has more to it than a lavish design. The house can withstand an RDX explosion, and if that's not safe enough, even an earthquake measuring 8 on the Richter scale can't damage it.

"The columns can be designed in such a way that it can stand an earthquake. At the most, there could be minor damage. But that won't make the building collapse," Dr K S Reddy, General Manager of Ashapura Samooh, explains.

The architect behind this dream home is Singapore-based James Young. And his vision will be there for all to see in just about two years time.

I did my own screencapture of the diagram, and its the same as Suns. The video scrolls upwards, but you can allign the building using the artifacts on the diagram.

http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/9405/1ak9.jpg
^ It is most definately not just 22 stories. Perhaps 22 stories is Ambani's "house", but I count a total of 42 stories: 10 storey podium + 32 storey tower, and a spire on top of that.

Here are some more screencaptures of the building. I had to tweak with these images so that they are clearer:

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/9629/5qy6.jpg
^ Top of the building

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/3559/2gt3.jpg
^ Detail of the spire

http://img119.imageshack.us/img119/6383/3bo2.jpg
^ Front of the building?

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/4958/4kd1.jpg
^ Back of the building


Any idea who this architect James Young is? I can't find a profile of him or his firm on the net. If we can, we can probably get better renderings.

-Jai

Mumbai to get 16 more flyovers

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1068600

The dream of Mumbaikars to drive from JJ Flyover to Mulund and from Bandra to Dahisar, without having to stop at any traffic signal, may be fulfilled in two years. After performing the bhoomipujan for 16 proposed flyovers for the city, at the flyover site on Santa Cruz Airport junction, Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, said: “The non-stop drive between each of the two destinations would reflect the busy lifestyle of Mumbaikars.” The ceremony is being seen as a precursor to the Congress’ campaign for the civic elections scheduled for early next year.

The proposed 16 flyovers would amount to a total of 9 km of elevated roads to be developed at a cost of Rs 416 crore.

Meanwhile the Hindustan Times reports
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1864185,000600010004.htm

The CM also did his bit to please the Congress high command in New Delhi by thanking party president Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for supporting the state government in its effort to fulfill the city's dreams. He also accepted Santacruz member of legislative assembly Kripashankar Singh's request that the flyover in his constituency be named after former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

It's a shame that in a land of billion people almost every project has to be named after Indira Gandhi or Raji Gandhi or Sanjay Gandhi or Jawaharlal Nehru. :nuts:

In city’s heart, dozen dazzlers rise

Graphic

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/4492/mumbaihtconstructionet4.jpg

Super-tall, super-expensive buildings are sprouting across west-central Mumbai, fertilised by growing fortunes and a rush for exclusive living.

Read the article (http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1853820,000600010004.htm)

^Cool graphic - the prices are surely increasing.

Regarding the Ambani house, Rs 120 crore is a lot (especially for a house), but is it enough for the 40-story building(s) in Jai's post, considering that it is not a junk design and contains a lot of unusual features?

It says SD Towers is 65 stories! YES! My original count (towers + podium) was correct!

It's odd that they count Planet Godrej as 5 towers. They seem pretty connected to me?
http://img82.imageshack.us/img82/8254/planetgodrejnq2ql1.jpg


Great graphic! I wonder why the artist lobbed off the top of Bellissimo though?

BTW this was a render of Ispat Tower that I had found long ago from
http://www.arcpac.com/ (check the residential section)

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/8568/33peddarroadispatarcpacze8.jpg

But this site (http://newsletter.wangfan.com/tke10/#8) shows a different one

ThyssenKrupp Elevator (India) Mumbai Branch was awarded a contract for five elevators for ISPAT, a new high-rise building in Mumbai. The new installations include two gearless at 4.0 m/s, two geared at 2.5 m/s and another geared car lift of 2000-kg at 0.5 m/s. The building is located at Mumbai's Pedder Road. The contract was signed on June 23rd with the commissioning of the new installations planned for January 2007.

http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/1811/ispattowernewes4.jpg

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1068600

The dream of Mumbaikars to drive from JJ Flyover to Mulund and from Bandra to Dahisar, without having to stop at any traffic signal, may be fulfilled in two years.

After performing the bhoomipujan for 16 proposed flyovers for the city, at the flyover site on Santa Cruz Airport junction, Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, said: “The non-stop drive between each of the two destinations would reflect the busy lifestyle of Mumbaikars.” The ceremony is being seen as a precursor to the Congress’ campaign for the civic elections scheduled for early next year.

While addressing a huge gathering at the proposed flyover’s site, Deshmukh said: “The city’s overall development is the primary the responsibility of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and authorities like the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) only assist the BMC.” While the proposed flyovers are being constructed under the World Bank-aided Mumbai Urban Infrastructure Project (MUIP) of the MMRDA, the CM repeatedly emphasised the role of the Centre in providing funds for the city’s development through the central government’s Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) scheme.

Gurudas Kamat, President, Mumbai Regional Congress President and Kripashankar Singh, Congress MLA from Santa Cruz were also present. Deshmukh said it was Congress’ endeavour to make Mumbai a world-class city in the next five years. Reacting to Kripashankar Singh’s allegations that the Shiv-Sena-BJP controlled BMC did not acknowledge the work of the MMRDA and was busy removing MMRDA sign boards from various project sites, Mumbai Mayor Datta Dalvi said: “The BMC was extending all possible help to the MMRDA and working in close coordination with it ” With civic elections approaching, political parties are trying to drum up their achievements. Metropolitan Commissioner T Chandrashekhar said: “We have identified 42 sites where flyovers are required of which bhoomipujan for 16 flyovers was performed today.”

Though Chandrashekhar didn’t specify the other prospective project sites, he added, “We will soon start scrutinising the other proposals.” He also informed that work on the dedicated bus lane, proposed by the Mumbai Traffic Wing of the All India Institute of Local Self Government in October, would soon begin along the Eastern Express Highway from Dadar to Mulund. “The proposed 16 flyovers would amount to a total of 9 km of elevated roads to be developed at a cost of Rs416 crore.”

I just also noticed in that map sun posted, it refers to the project at Spring Mills... is that this?
http://img157.imageshack.us/img157/9241/pgjp8lx6.jpg

^^

BombayBoy>

is it one of these? There is a third crane at a lower height too.

http://img93.imageshack.us/img93/7810/mumbaiskylinesunilshabahh9.jpg

its not the two towers that can be seen, these are closer to peddar road. the one in the foreground is partly financed by ln mittal. the one in the back is behind woodlands (the building society)

the third crane might be it, as ambani's house is deeper inside altamount road. quite close to kumarmangalam's house actually. quite a billionaire's road altamount is

its not the two towers that can be seen, these are closer to peddar road. the one in the foreground is partly financed by ln mittal. the one in the back is behind woodlands (the building society)

the third crane might be it, as ambani's house is deeper inside altamount road. quite close to kumarmangalam's house actually. quite a billionaire's road altamount is

Thanks. So that means the one on the foreground is the Ispat Tower (mittals). Probably not LN but his relatives who run the not so fanous Ispat Industries?

Govind Niwas is on Altamount Road (Double basement + 40’ high podium having 18 floors with 3 level parking )

http://www.bebanco.com/images/GovindNiwas.jpg

and so is One Altamount (12 parking levels + 22 typical floors with duplex flats)

http://www.bebanco.com/images/1ARd.jpg

Not sure if Chattan is in the making yet.

your pic for govind niwas looks a lot like sd

yeah must be the other mittals then. my unc must have got it wrong

I hope mumbai metro construction starts at least in this decade.
:ohno:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/780600.cms

At least, CM sells dreams

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ TUESDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2006 03:42:15 AM]

MUMBAI: Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh is in a mood to play Santa. The ensuing municipal elections in the state has seen the chief minister going on a project announcement spree. When it comes to Mumbai, the chief minister’s office is almost like a ‘dream selling’ agency.:bash: But the dreams stay the way they are, just dreams. The government goes on launching projects without having completed a single one.

On Sunday, Mr Deshmukh launched a mega plan to build as many as 15 fly-overs in the city, requiring an investment of Rs 416 crore. The government has promised to complete the construction within 15 months. But, going by its past record, it can be delayed by at least a couple of years. For, every state project, barring none, has overshot the target, on expense and time-table.

The proposed fly-overs will be built by the state government-promoted regional development authority. Add to it the two bridges being taken up by the BMC — the Sena-run municipal body has its own plan to woo voters.

It has offered to construct two bridges at a cost of Rs 38 crore. This means, if the plans fructify, Mumbai will have another 17 fly-overs. A glaring example of the state’s tardy implementation of infrastructure projects is the Mumbai metro. The project was launched three-months ago with big fanfare in the presence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and preliminary work on the first phase was scheduled to begin by October. But nothing has happened so far. :bash:

The work on the Rs 2,356-crore project, an 11-km stretch connecting Ghatkopar to Andheri, is yet to take off. “The Centre is yet to approve the viability gap funding for the project. Besides, the displacement is causing a delay,” a top functionary of the Democratic Front government said on Monday.

But this did not deter the chief minister from announcing phase II and III of the project. The last Cabinet meeting saw Mr Deshmukh announcing the Rs 6,192-crore Charkop-Mankhurd (32km) and Rs 1,655-crore Mahim-Mankhurd (38km) links as well.

Amidst all this, the state’s special secretary on Mumbai, Sanjay Ubale, made an out-of-the-blue announcement to revive trams in the city. Mr Ubale said this while addressing a seminar on Mumbai’s transport plans. But he then had to face a rebuttal from BEST, which is controlled by the Shiv Sena.

“We have no plans to revive the trams system in Mumbai,” BEST clarified. Similar is the fate of the special taxi service launched by the chief minister last month. It worked, but only on the first day. Since then the state-of-the-art taxis are languishing in garages for want of necessary permissions.

Now, the government is talking about yet another mass rapid transit system. “We really don’t know what it means. Many people are talking many things,” said a transport department official. Then the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) announced a SkyBus service for the city. “The PMC had made a similar announcement just ahead of the last elections. Nothing has moved since then,” said an official.

It was an official from the state finance department who best summed up the mood. “This is nothing but pre-election gimmickry. You don’t have to take it seriously,” he said, sounding dismissive.

.com/articleshow/780600.cms[/url]

At least, CM sells dreams

It was an official from the state finance department who best summed up the mood. “This is nothing but pre-election gimmickry. You don’t have to take it seriously,” he said, sounding dismissive.

I guess that sums it up.

I just also noticed in that map sun posted, it refers to the project at Spring Mills... is that this?
http://img157.imageshack.us/img157/9241/pgjp8lx6.jpg

As per DP Architects website it is:

http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/7281/mumbaisprngmillsdpsze0.jpg

Not sure if the 58 floors means two towers together.

And this was the Bombay Dyeing press release
http://www.bombaydyeing.com/rt_pressrelease_032006.html

Following the Supreme Court judgment on 7th March, 2006 clarifying the regulatory basis of the development of cotton textile mill lands, the Company’s Spring Mill land development at Dadar has commenced. Besides a residential segment the first phase of the Spring Mills Project also includes a Town/Shopping Centre development serving Central Mumbai and its residents.

i am in LOVE with the interior desing of the orchid enclave(i think it is) idk but these pics make me go crazy

http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/5388/03cm8.jpg
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/1797/04zs4.jpg

its soo awsome kinda like bachans house in bluffmaster

i really wanna get a flat somwhere in bandra near the sea or in pali hill or near st andrews and chand terrraces(for those who know)
somwehre like jivitesh towers and do my interior exactly like that...wow


this prob nvr gonna happen

not a project but Mumbai will host the finals of the 2011 Cricket World Cup. Hopefully the BCCI will take their wankers out of each other's mouth and actually give us some quality cricket infrastructure.

Mumbai to host 2011 World Cup final (http://www.ndtv.com/sports/cricket/showstory.asp?id=31591)

Mumbai will now host the 2011 World Cup final. The decision was made at a meeting held at BCCI President Sharad Pawar's house on Monday evening.

Earlier it had been decided that Delhi would host the final.

Some of the other decisions though remain the same, including Pakistan and Sri Lanka hosting the two semi-finals. However, the 1992 champions have been given an additional match to host. So, 15 matches will now be played in Pakistan.

The opening ceremony will stay in Bangladesh and will be held at the Bongabandu stadium in Dhaka.

A committee was also formed to look into all matters regarding the world cup.

The IPSB, as it is called, will be headed by Sharad Pawar with PCB Chairman Naseem Ashraf as the Convenor.

Sujeeva Rajpakse of Sri Lanka was nominated the treasurer. Each country will have three members on the committee, which is to meet next on the May 19 and 20 in Marie in Pakistan.

^^
Huh!?

What happened to the new world class stadium @ New Delhi bullsh&t by the BCCI!?