Its just a dream....I am not gonna sit down and cry if its not gonna happen....It would be just better if future skyscrapers (let it be in this decade or next century) were built there....It will make a good skyline along with India Tower in Marine Lines.

Those are among the few (and rapidly disappearing) green spaces left in the city.

Edited

It would be just better if future skyscrapers were built there

Erm, no. I'm all for skyscrapers, but not on the few sporting fields/open spaces we have left.

If you did realize, virtually the whole of South Bombay (by that I mean the old dilapidated chawls and buildings) is redevelop able land.

Mumbai needs to preserve open\green belts

^^ +1 - I'd rather they take up redevelopment of those chawls/slums at the top of the picture and put up a series of towers there! Might even be better as they would be behind India Tower and not block the Tower view from the south east (in the picture point of view) angle!!

I have a vision......
http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/6258/mumbaiskyscrapervision.jpg

So anybody has any knowledge about those land......I just wanna know if the developers can have access to them....If supertalls were built on those land....It will compliment India Tower and Mumbai's skyline...No?!?!

Its just a dream....I am not gonna sit down and cry if its not gonna happen....It would be just better if future skyscrapers (let it be in this decade or next century) were built there....It will make a good skyline along with India Tower in Marine Lines.



Dude those are some of old gymkhana and ground's in Mumbai and though they will complement India tower green belts are much important than looks as even a single skyscraper will disturb environment much :ohno:

thnkfully!! preserve grounds and green pockets...

they are hardly green.


most of the year they are brown due to the scorched grass. and used for playing cricket on by members. they only become green in the monsoons.


just like aarey colony i would describe them as open spaces rather than green spots.



Plus from my recollection, (and i could be wrong) you require membership to get into them. Azad maidan is open to the public.


Why the hell the police need a ground or gymkhana in such a prime area is beyond me.


Its like the Army in Colaba. Thats akin to the US army occupying the financial district manhatten

Not the army, mainly the navy. But then what right do financial companies have to occupy prime land/

Not the army, mainly the navy. But then what right do financial companies have to occupy prime land/

nope the army.

Navy too occupies but the army occupies probably more

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Army-lied-about-Adarsh-land/articleshow/9390191.cms


and who said they have to be financial companies? They can be any company or even a hotel.



Good road connection+ good public transport connection means we need offices/hotels. They generate jobs.

Why any company ;)

There's no real reason. It's just a lot of hungry developers waiting to get some more action.

Why any company ;)

they generate jobs...... :lol:

i dont even mind the government setting up offices there.




Point being either

(a) convert the land into a park

(b) give builders the option to build the skyscraper.


But if you think some place which requires membership (which at times can be very snobby) just to get into. I dont count that as public green/open space.


Its similar to my objection to Mahalaxmi racecourse which i dont really count as an open space either cause apart from the extremely small park as a ratio to the total land its pretty much members only.

and a similar case for Aarey.


These are not public spaces. Public being the key word.

Well if it's jobs, then army+navy is one of the largest employers around :lol:

Also there's a lot of intangibles like colonial-era heritage buildings in that area, which I'm sure people like Bombay Boy would hate going the way of the majority of Mumbai's colonial buildings.

just coz i and you don't get to use it, is not reason enuf for 'em to be forced under development...

I think there is some opportunity to open these grounds to the public in the future, of course if such grounds exist that is... hopefully these will be preserved... there is plenty of opportunity with old chawls/dilapidated buildings... that shud go under redevelopment first...

Police have had that gymkhana from British times... and so have the Hindu/Parsi gymkhanas...

they are hardly green.


most of the year they are brown due to the scorched grass. and used for playing cricket on by members. they only become green in the monsoons.


just like aarey colony i would describe them as open spaces rather than green spots.



Plus from my recollection, (and i could be wrong) you require membership to get into them. Azad maidan is open to the public.


Why the hell the police need a ground or gymkhana in such a prime area is beyond me.


Its like the Army in Colaba. Thats akin to the US army occupying the financial district manhatten

nobody is forcing anybody.

but i think if these gymkhana members or whatever decide to sell nobody should stop them.

honestly there is not even much heritage there. Its mostly barren land.


the police can sell the land and buy probably 3 times larger plot of land in BKC for all their needs.

Well if it's jobs, then army+navy is one of the largest employers around :lol:

Also there's a lot of intangibles like colonial-era heritage buildings in that area, which I'm sure people like Bombay Boy would hate going the way of the majority of Mumbai's colonial buildings.

its barren land dude. the gymkahana or internal structures have been modernised over time.

its not like they are buildings from the 1900s still standing.




from the google pic, you can even see freaking tennis courts.

Trust me I know. I've lived there ;)

Trust me I know. I've lived there ;)

I have been there as well. I honestly did not see anything remotely heritage.


Most of the time these ground get used of places where the members children get married.

Well police gymkahan might be different

anyways we are drifting from the topic

I would like to say as a final thing

(a) its not a public space

(b) there is not much heritage left there.

(c) I think many of these grounds are on 100 years lease. (i am not sure).

(d) The grounds are used to play cricket, marches(for the police anyways) and weddings.


Frankly i could care less if they are preserved or not. Would rather conserve or pump money into an open place like shivaji park.

I think we are talking about two different things :shifty:

AAnyways...my long term plan is to float a real estate firm which will bribe some top politicos and babus in South Block to clear up that land for me to build a dozen or so supertalls. And an underground six lane highway from there to Borivali. Anyone wanna join?

beam me up buddy... but only if you plan to build the six lane highway in a highly clandestine manner... like tunnels in prison breaks...

there is a ton of opportunity tho... there are many old residential buildings which sooner or later may come under redevelopment...
Erm, no. I'm all for skyscrapers, but not on the few sporting fields/open spaces we have left.

If you did realize, virtually the whole of South Bombay (by that I mean the old dilapidated chawls and buildings) is redevelop able land.

Well...Thats good....Its rather better to remove the ugly ones and makes beautiful scrapers than to use the green spaces

they are hardly green.


most of the year they are brown due to the scorched grass. and used for playing cricket on by members. they only become green in the monsoons.
Thats what I thought too....They are not green at all....If they were actually green, I wouldn't have thought about it.....But in the map, there is like a forest in the strip of land above the "gymkhanas"...I didn't say anything about it...right??!!!

Wow! 700m??

but there have to be adequate grounds in the city too... you cannot play cricket and soccer in the forest... :) so grounds (no matter how brown these appear), parks, green pockets should be preserved...

Well...Thats good....Its rather better to remove the ugly ones and makes beautiful scrapers than to use the green spaces


Thats what I thought too....They are not green at all....If they were actually green, I wouldn't have thought about it.....But in the map, there is like a forest in the strip of land above the "gymkhanas"...I didn't say anything about it...right??!!!

Cmmon guys a few good field are very necessary .. later on they can be developed into good sporting public ground or other public open spaces ... its by the sea and a good place for it. I think there are plenty of chawls, mills , dilapidated housings to redevelop in Mumbai !!

but such a small site for a gigantic tower??

they are hardly green.


most of the year they are brown due to the scorched grass. and used for playing cricket on by members. they only become green in the monsoons.


just like aarey colony i would describe them as open spaces rather than green spots.



Plus from my recollection, (and i could be wrong) you require membership to get into them. Azad maidan is open to the public.


Why the hell the police need a ground or gymkhana in such a prime area is beyond me.


Its like the Army in Colaba. Thats akin to the US army occupying the financial district manhatten

the gymkhanas are open to the public at designated times every day

its also open for rent for longer hours if you want to play a full fledged cricket match

its used for promoting sports. most clubs have a large member base. there are also regular coaching camps held on the grounds

parsi gym and police gym are well maintained through the year. the worst is grand medical, with hindu and islam somewhere in between

Yeah...I guess...The best way really is bring down the old and the ugly buildings and then build scrapers...

Post 2G, DB Realty finds its projects scrapped, delayed
Shalini Nair
Posted: Sun Jul 31 2011, 02:15 hrs
Mumbai:

Months after three of its top officials were arrested in connection with their alleged role in the 2G spectrum scam, problems continue to mount for the high-profile and controversial real estate firm DB Realty. At least five projects of the company linked to the government sector have been scrapped, put on hold or are struggling for approvals, while 10 of their own 13 projects are behind schedule. On the face of it, these projects have nothing to do with the DB group’s troubles in the telecom sector.

In fact, certain projects such as Orchid Turf in Mahalaxmi, Orchid Corporate Park in Andheri, Orchid Crown in Dadar and Orchid Views in Mumbai Central are staring at a two-year delay.

Full Article Indian Express (http://www.indianexpress.com/news/post-2g-db-realty-finds-its-projects-scrapped-delayed/824903/0)

so is this particular project also scrapped

the article hasn't mentioned about this project....

it says only the "government" project as scrapped .. what I know their project on Pune got scrapped but hopefully this one is only delayed .. crap DB is like building half of Mumbais Supertalls and the Best one too :(

it says only the "government" project as scrapped .. what I know their project on Pune got scrapped but hopefully this one is only delayed .. crap DB is like building half of Mumbais Supertalls and the Best one too :(

+1 Exactly what I wanted to say....

I like both designs..But which is been finalized and when it is going to complete its project..

^^^

wooho .. you need to do a lot of catchup.
If you read the first page carefully it will tell u the final design ( the triangular one) .. its U/C but seems like on hold now and hopefully due to Monsoon !!

So this tower is no more second tallest......now it may be third tallest....

http://www.rediff.com/business/slide-show/slide-show-1-the-worlds-new-tallest-tower/20110804.htm

^^Yeah I read that too....I was like thats sexy and then got pissed because this one will slip a rank...But lets see, is it really safe to build a 1001 m tower...I doubt it....But If they build that one, I am not gonna worry cuz then that would revolutionize the architect's views.....I didn't worry too much cuz no matter in all the three tallest, the design for India Tower is the sickest in my opinion....

Wow for the first time someone wants to knock off our designs, this looks so much like India Tower.

^^ It IS India Tower... :doh:

Here's a height comparison between India and Kingdom tower that was posted in the Kingdom tower thread on SSC (scroll to the right):

http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/2183/worldtallaug.jpg

[QUOTE=Chrisel;82559087]Here's a height comparison between India and Kingdom tower that was posted in the Kingdom tower thread on SSC (scroll to the right):

While every other building has a U/C status this one proudly says On Hold.

Very nice representation and Lol at ON HOLD.....I swear, I am gonna give up hope on Indian Supertalls if it doesn't get built...Cuz we got a lot to catch up on.

Wow for the first time someone wants to knock off our designs, this looks so much like India Tower.

Yeah....They are only trying to beat Foster's India Tower Design....But India Tower is just sexier than Kingdom, which is byfar the third sexiest design I have ever seen in my life after India Tower and Burj Khalifa and after Kingdom tower comes Shanghai Tower which is very beautiful.

^^ It IS India Tower... :doh:

He's talking about Kingdom Tower in Jeddah :lol:

That will probably be finished before India Tower at the pace it's going.

He's talking about Kingdom Tower in Jeddah :lol:

That will probably be finished before India Tower at the pace it's going.

u bet..all said and done sandland is great at doing these things..with oil money and focussed management it will see the light of day even before our moronic politicos can agree on the design

[QUOTE=dunefreezer;82573363]Very nice representation and Lol at ON HOLD.....I swear, I am gonna give up hope on Indian Supertalls if it doesn't get built...Cuz we got a lot to catch up on.

iam just wondering how easy it is to draw up a 3 km high supertall and call 'on hold' and then let it stay that way for 5 years until it slides itself out of peoples memory!!I sincerely hope this will come up

Why do I feel that the Kingdom tower will be built quicker and may be 3-4 four years before the completion of India tower (may be in 2020)?

Why do I feel that the Kingdom tower will be built quicker and may be 3-4 four years before the completion of India tower (may be in 2020)?
Because everything in India runs on the Indian Standard Time. Expect the expected!

He's talking about Kingdom Tower in Jeddah :lol:

That will probably be finished before India Tower at the pace it's going.

ohh didn't see the posts above it. :lol:

Anywho, when does this monsoon season end in Mumbai?

^^Doesn't seem to end in my lifetime....damnit....When I want the time to go fast, it doesn't happen and vice versa...

DB Realty to pick up 49% in hospitality arm

Pooja Sarkar / Kolkata August 13, 2011, 0:03 IST

Dynamix Balwas (DB) Realty, the Mumbai-based realtor, has decided to buy upto 49 per cent stake in its hospitality arm, DB Hospitality Ltd, an unlisted arm where the promoters hold a majority stake.

The promoters of the company, Vinod Goenka and Shahid Balwa, own 80.92 per cent in DB Hospitality Ltd while the rest is owned by private equity funds, including IIRF Holdings VIII Limited and Mauritius and IL&FS Trust Company Limited.

Last year, Trinity Capital (Seven) Limited, Mauritius, exited its stake from the hospitality business. It was not clear whether funds will exit their stakes or promoters will reduce their share in the company.

R Sridhar, group director, said: “ The board has approved an investment upto 49 per cent in the hospitality business and we will do it in a timely and phased manner. We have already hired a big four international property consultant (IPC) to do the valuations and one of the big law firms to draw the plans. We will not raise any debt for the same.The stake buy out will enable both the funds and the promoter an opportunity to exit.”

According to analysts, the transaction will be fructified in the next 15 days or by the end of the month. DB will also focus on commercial and hotels business.

DB Realty does not own any stake in the hospitality arm at present. It had invested around Rs 200 crore last year in D B Hospitality which will now be converted into equity. The company will invest an incremental amount of Rs 500 crore which will be divided into two tranches. In the first tranche, it will spend Rs 300-400 crore and another Rs 200 crore in the final stages. The total investment will be around Rs 700 crore.

DB Realty is also planning to sell non-core assets to fund the acquisition. Sridhar said a few firms had been hired for selling the non-core assets that have already been identified.

“An investment banking firm has been calling up private equity funds to show assets of DB Realty for fund raising. DB has been trying to raise money for its upcoming hotel assets with Hilton,” said the managing director of one of the big private realty equity firm said:

DB Realty witnessed a 33 per cent fall in its consolidated net profit to Rs 41.14 crore for the quarter ended June, against Rs 61.84 crore during the year-ago period. Net sales for the period fell 16.33 per cent to Rs 221.5 crore in the first quarter of this financial year, against Rs 264.7 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal.

Sources said the assets such as hospitality assets and land parcels, including the marine drive property and two projects in central Mumbai. In Q1FY12, the company had sold 24 per cent in D B Hotels Pvt Ltd internally and 100 per cent stake of DB Properties Pvt Ltd.

An analyst from an international brokerage tracking the company said: “DB Realty is saying it would invest the money it will receive as cash flow into the hotel arm and they are expecting a yield of 3-5 per cent and some capital appreciation. DB plans to raise debt on project specific basis for their real estate projects which is the core business. It is not a wise move because these cash flows could have been used for project financing than raising debt on book. Also if we see the earnings before interest depreciation, tax and ammortisation (ebidta) margins have dropped as compared to last year which nobody seems to be bothered about.”

D B Hospitality operates 900 rooms in four hotels. The properties in Mumbai and Ahmedabad are managed by Hilton Worldwide. They have one hotel in Rajasthan and one in Goa. The company plans to operate 2500 rooms in the next four years. It is also working on setting up five properties with Chicago-headquartered Hyatt Hotels Corporation. The properties will come up in Mumbai, Pune, Mundra (Gujarat) and Goa.

D B Hospitality Limited, Mauritius (DBHLM), owns 100 per cent of the hospitality arm DB Hospitality Pvt ltd. The promoter’s have pledged 27 per cent shares of DB Hospitality Pvt Ltd. Their 5.8 crore equity share holding is lying in an escrow account with ICICI Bank Limited for securing a loan of $138 million by the parent hospitality arm.

DB Realty has booked sales of 0.6 msft for the first quarter of this finanical year, where transfer of development rights or TDR sales have contributed to 0.5 msft and apartment sale of 45-50,000 sft

source: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/db-realty-to-pick49-in-hospitality-arm/445747/

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6183/6036994006_8ea2e6835a_b.jpg
http://stdio-london.com/007A/

Is this one on hold?

Delete

In other news.

2G scam dust settles, Bandra govt colony back on track

Posted: Thu Aug 18 2011, 01:25 hrs

After studied silence that followed charges of DB group’s involvement in the 2G spectrum scam, the state government has now decided to go ahead with the Bandra government colony redevelopment project in which DB Realty has the highest stake.
pread over a 95-acre green enclave, the redevelopment of the government colony is slated to be the city’s largest such project. A big chunk of the redevelopment pie of 57 acres is with DB Realty. Last July, all three developers were issued the Letter of Intent by the government. However, the process came to a standstill after the company’s name came to the fore in the 2G scam this February.
PWD minister Chhagan Bhujbal said the government had only said it will examine whether the project was allotted as per rules and regulations. “We had only said that we will reconsider it. The bids were approved by the Cabinet. We haven’t found any flaw so as to take action against it,” said Bhujbal


Full Article (http://www.indianexpress.com/news/2g-scam-dust-settles-bandra-govt-colony-back-on-track/833510/0)




Anywho, when does this monsoon season end in Mumbai?

Starts retreating by September, leaves Mumbai by 5th October.
Monsoon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsoon_in_India)

Guys.. is MONSOON becoming an excuse or is it just an Indian thing? I see constructions going on everywhere else weather it rains or shines..

Seriously - what makes work stop during monsoons in India ?

Water Logging...

Is this one on hold?

No, it's currently up to the 95th floor :)

^^lmao India101!!!

On second thought, I seriously wish you were right!!! ;)

Looks like 2G is the reason why the tower is on hold and not the monsoons. I exchanged a couple of messages with an engineer at L&T on facebook. Here's our conversation verbatim. Let's call him "the Dude" to keep his identity anonymous.

IU: Hi, I saw that you work at L&T. I was just wondering what is the status of the India tower in Mumbai?

the Dude: on hold bos............may i know how r u related ?

IU: Just a fan of skyscrapers and urban development in India. Its on hold cos of financial reasons or the monsoons?

the Dude: something else

IU: I'm guessing its related to 2g?

the Dude: hmmmmmmmm

IU: But all the other projects by db are under construction..even the crown project in prabhadevi which is also under L&T. So why is this one on hold? I'm just curious

the Dude: even i m not aware but 2 G was d reason in my knowledge

___________

My hunch is that since the 2 promoters are in jail because of 2G, financing the project became an issue (Goenka and Balwa own 80% of DB Hospitality) which is why DB Realty decided to pump in some money and get a 49% stake. With that taken care of, work should now resume.

:badnews:

^Financing the project is not an issue anymore, so that's one major hurdle out of the way. The other one is the Wakf Board who managed to get the MH government to stop work in May. It may be a while before that is settled. Apart from that, there's another issue of an ordinance issued by BMC (challenged by DB) but that is being taken care of by the High Court in DB's favor:

August 8: How can you contradict your rule: HC to BMC (http://www.hindustantimes.com/How-can-you-contradict-your-rule-HC-to-BMC/Article1-730671.aspx)

Irked with the functioning of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Bombay high court noted down the names of two civic officials, just stopping short of summoning civic chief, Subodh Kumar. The court was hearing a petition filed by developers DB Hospitality and Suresh Estate challenging the stop-work notice issued by the civic body against the construction of its five star hotel at Charni Road. The developers’ counsel Rafiq Dada pointed out that the BMC had demanded development charges at the rate of Rs2,200 per sqft as against the current rate of Rs500 per sqft relying on an ordinance that is still to come into force.

The BMC’s approach with regard to the ordinance affecting an amendment in Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act that was not published in the official gazette annoyed the judges.

The judges questioned that how could a statutory body take a stand completely contrary to the settled legal position, and against the specific wording of the ordinance, which states that it will come into force on the day of its notification in the official gazette. “One can imagine, how these officers must be behaving with ordinary citizens, who cannot approach us,” the division bench of justice DK Deshmukh and justice RG Ketkar said.

Counsel for the BMC, Preeti Purandare, contended that the ordinance came into force the day on which the BMC received the notification regarding the same. She also pointed out a clear statement to that effect was made in the affidavit of a civic official filed in response to the petition.

The judges commented: “The time has come to summon the BMC chief specifically to show him how the civic officials work.”

Granting the civic body time till Tuesday, the judges directed Subodh Kumar to suspend the two officers if their counsel failed to convince how the ordinance could be made applicable without a notification.

India tower in 3D
i think williemore created this one

Source (http://esaf3d.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2011-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2012-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=6)
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t0Rxhn8I6lY/TjMEh2QAZ7I/AAAAAAAAAfI/XG51ROrfQsw/s1600/6.jpg

What a beast of a tower.. hope it will get build. Together with the Shanghai Tower my favorite project

I'm pretty sure Yasin Esaf is not Williemore.

FWIW, the WOLFF crane is still at the site (center of the pic)

Aug 26 - Copyright Ashok Kumar
http://img850.imageshack.us/img850/7319/ashokkumaraug26.jpg

Work will hopefully resume soon with DB Realty picking up a major stake in DB Hospitality. One of the articles had mentioned that the transaction is expected to be completed by the end of this month.

IU, can you identify that tower rising in the background (left if the WOLFF crane). It is rising really quick and looks like it could be big.

I posted some satellite images of it in the Mumbai Projects thread a while ago.

Can you look for those satellite pics? the street name and neighborhood greatly help to narrow down.

I think this is it -

http://maps.google.com.au/maps?hl=en&ll=18.958924,72.82003&spn=0.001832,0.004128&t=h&z=19&vpsrc=6

There's a tower at a more advanced stage of construction with a crane about 100 meters north-east of what you've marked:
http://maps.google.com.au/maps?q=Khemraj+Srikrishna+Das+Marg,+Khetwadi,+Girgaon+Chowpatty,+Mumbai,+Maharashtra,+India&hl=en&ll=18.959639,72.821618&spn=0.00139,0.001725&sll=18.959058,72.818595&sspn=0.00556,0.006899&vpsrc=6&t=h&z=19

That might be the one. It's called Sanghvi Galaxy:
http://sanghvigroup.co.in/Galaxy/PhotoGallery.aspx

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that building to the north east Shreepati Castle?

And that Sanghvi Galaxy is disappointment, nothing spectacular at all.

What I marked is actually Shreepati Castle. Galaxy is the one u/c to the east of it on the same block.

:bash:
ED orders attachment of properties in 2G scam

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has ordered the freezing of bank accounts and attachment of immoveable properties of five companies in connection with the alleged bribe of about Rs. 200 crore illegally paid to Kalaignar TV in the 2G spectrum allocation scam.

The bank accounts and immovable property, especially the land of Dynamix realty, Conwood Constructions, Eversmile Constructions, Nihar Constructions and DB realty, have been ordered to be attached, official sources said.

The ED had initiated the proceedings for attachment of properties about a fortnight ago and formal orders were issued on Tuesday, sources said.

Sources said the properties will be attached under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and will be termed as "proceeds of crime" under the Act.

The CBI charge sheet in the 2G spectrum scam alleged that Rs. 200 crore had been channelised from Shahid Usman Balwa's DB Realty to DMK-run Kalaignar TV through a "circuitous route" via Cineyug Films and Kusegaon Fruits and Vegetables Pvt Ltd for grant of licence to Shahid Balwa's Swan Telecom. The money was allegedly ploughed back to buy real estate.

The action of ED in ordering attachment of properties is in consonance with the ED's status report on its probe in the 2G spectrum scam, which it presented before the Supreme Court last month. ED counsel had told the Supreme Court that it would attach the properties in a month's time.

Counsel had also told the court that Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violations were noticed in its preliminary inquiry against DB group, Virgin mobile, Milky Way Developers and ETA Star group.

ED sources said the Directorate has identified properties of Kalaignar TV worth Rs. 215 crore, located in different parts of Tamil Nadu, including Chennai.

While former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi's wife Dayalu Ammal and his daughter Kanimozhi, a Rajya Sabha member who is now lodged at Tihar Central jail here, hold 80 per cent stake in Kalaignar TV, Sharad Kumar, the channel's managing director, holds the remaining 20 per cent. He is also lodged at Tihar jail.

According to sources, the PMLA proceedings have focussed on recovering the money allegedly paid to former Telecom Minister A. Raja and his associates as illegal gratification as a quid pro quo for granting favours in allotment of the spectrum.

source The HINDU (http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2412496.ece)

WWHHAAT THE EEFF!!!!..Honestly I don't know what this is gonna turn into....:wallbash:

:bash:
ED orders attachment of properties in 2G scam

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has ordered the freezing of bank accounts and attachment of immoveable properties of five companies in connection with the alleged bribe of about Rs. 200 crore illegally paid to Kalaignar TV in the 2G spectrum allocation scam.

The bank accounts and immovable property, especially the land of Dynamix realty, Conwood Constructions, Eversmile Constructions, Nihar Constructions and DB realty, have been ordered to be attached, official sources said.

The ED had initiated the proceedings for attachment of properties about a fortnight ago and formal orders were issued on Tuesday, sources said.

Sources said the properties will be attached under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and will be termed as "proceeds of crime" under the Act.

The CBI charge sheet in the 2G spectrum scam alleged that Rs. 200 crore had been channelised from Shahid Usman Balwa's DB Realty to DMK-run Kalaignar TV through a "circuitous route" via Cineyug Films and Kusegaon Fruits and Vegetables Pvt Ltd for grant of licence to Shahid Balwa's Swan Telecom. The money was allegedly ploughed back to buy real estate.

The action of ED in ordering attachment of properties is in consonance with the ED's status report on its probe in the 2G spectrum scam, which it presented before the Supreme Court last month. ED counsel had told the Supreme Court that it would attach the properties in a month's time.

Counsel had also told the court that Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violations were noticed in its preliminary inquiry against DB group, Virgin mobile, Milky Way Developers and ETA Star group.

ED sources said the Directorate has identified properties of Kalaignar TV worth Rs. 215 crore, located in different parts of Tamil Nadu, including Chennai.

While former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi's wife Dayalu Ammal and his daughter Kanimozhi, a Rajya Sabha member who is now lodged at Tihar Central jail here, hold 80 per cent stake in Kalaignar TV, Sharad Kumar, the channel's managing director, holds the remaining 20 per cent. He is also lodged at Tihar jail.

According to sources, the PMLA proceedings have focussed on recovering the money allegedly paid to former Telecom Minister A. Raja and his associates as illegal gratification as a quid pro quo for granting favours in allotment of the spectrum.

source The HINDU (http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2412496.ece)

52 crores? Bahhhhhh

The value of properties attached of these companies are Dynamix Realty (Rs 134 crore), Conwood Construction and Developers (Rs 22 crore), Nihar Constructions (Rs 1.10 crore), DB Realty (Rs 52 crore) and Eversmile Construction Company (Rs 13 crore).

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/2g-scam-ed-orders-freezing-of-accounts-of-five-companies/839439/

That's unfortunate but then that's what you get for giving kickbacks as unsecured loans. Balwa should never have diversified and gotten into telecom. Goenka's role hasn't even been proven so far so he might be out on bail. btw dynamix realty and conwood constructions are both owned by DB Realty so that puts all of DB's current projects in a limbo.

Also wanted to point out that the India tower land is owned by DB Hospitality under the Neelkamal/Suresh Estate company name so it shouldn't be attached to the case.

Source (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/telecom/2g-scam-db-realty-to-move-court-against-ed-decision-to-attach-property/articleshow/9816002.cms) The Economic Times

1 Sep, 2011, 03.15AM IST, ET Bureau
2G Scam: DB Realty to move court against ED decision to attach property

MUMBAI Realty developer DB Realty is planning to move court against the Enforcement Directorate's notice to attach properties of the company in connection with 2G telecom spectrum allocation scam, said a company official.

"We will move the court against any such order," said N Shridhar, group director, business strategy and finance. However, he also added that the company has not received any such notice yet.

"DB has no relation with Swan Telecom or any other entity sought to be implicated in this matter. Therefore, any attachment of properties of DB or associate companies will be ultra vires," he said. This will not impact the realty developer's normal business operations, he added.

Lets wait and see if it has an impact on India Tower, I don't care about their other projects...I am just gonna hope this tower doesn't get let down.

gloom

Its simple really the more Panga Balwa takes by naming the PMO, FM Officers or Ratan Tata and Anil Ambani (He wants these guys to be cross examined in the court), the lesser the chances of this tower coming up.

Where is that Master of Disguise guy? He seemed to know alot about this project. My fingures are crossed!

could this be the next supertallest??

If this ever gets built, at that point of completion.....It might be the third tallest after Kingdom Tower (Planned) and Burj Khalifa (Built).....

Who thinks they might complete Kingdom Tower before this one gets built because of its pace and obstacles it faces every now and then....

Kingdom tower would be a good pony to bet on.

September, 9th 2011 Update
Site dead with a complete halt when i went there yesterday...
http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/7379/img0623ww.jpg

damn !! Thanks for update Savz !!

Shame. Really thought this building would take of.
Thanks for all your updates Savz.

Just when I had held my hopes high for this one to put india on landmark iconic supertall map.

In India, nothing has change, nothing will be changed.

no supertall will ever be constructed or topped off before getting into some sort of letigation or red tape.

This was going to be a thing of beauty overlooking arabian sea and Bombay's anwer to Dubai.

But corruption, scams, red tape is the true legacy of India

first the Noida tower
then the APIIC Tower
then the Lanco signature Tower
then the Gujarat Diamond Tower

now

this, the India Tower in the heart of Mumbai. :bash:

the guj diamond tower is still on right?

the guj diamond tower is still on right?
Of course but its in the phase 2 of Gift !!

Has the project been scrapped? :ohno: It seems the foundation work has already been done...so will another tower be rising there instead?

Just when I had held my hopes high for this one to put india on landmark iconic supertall map.

In India, nothing has change, nothing will be changed.

no supertall will ever be constructed or topped off before getting into some sort of letigation or red tape.

This was going to be a thing of beauty overlooking arabian sea and Bombay's anwer to Dubai.

But corruption, scams, red tape is the true legacy of India

first the Noida tower
then the APIIC Tower
then the Lanco signature Tower
then the Gujarat Diamond Tower

now

this, the India Tower in the heart of Mumbai. :bash:

^^Exactly what I am feeling right now.....Until 3 years ago, I had no hope whatsoever for India to shine fast and then hope rushed in out of nowhere and now it feels gloomy.....I am probably gonna stop checking these threads for any miracle.....If this project becomes dead, I would feel sorry for the updaters here like CG, India101, Savz etc who wasted their time for something like this.

I was starting to think India will have its image makeover in a couple of decades, but with things like these, no wonder people say it will take a century.

Calm down drama queens. :lol:

Thanks for the compliment and advice......Think I am calming down right now....lmao..xD

Any official reasons yet to why its on hold?

Monsoons! I really do hope that the reasons just the monsoon. But i think we all know thats not the case.

I think the end of monsoon is just a thunderstorm away. So by now the site must have been buzzing with workers preping the site for work to begin. Looks rather gloomy.

am pretty sure a "signed-off" tower that went through such a transparent bidding process (of course - until Waqf board decided months after bidding+construction started that it was theirs!!) would not be on hold for long!! Perhaps until the economic climate improves - just like in 2008!!

^If you're talking about the India tower then you're wrong on mutliple counts:

-There was no bidding for the land. DB got the land from Suresh Estate which had in turn had apparently bought it in 1994. Some say that Suresh Estate = Shahid Balwa + Neelkamal Realtors but I'm not not sure of its veracity.

-The Waqf board has been against the project since Day 1. The SSC India blog had received complaints from people in the know back in April 2008...much before construction started.

-The India tower is on hold not because of economic reasons. The promoters of DB Hospitality are flush with money but sitting in jail because of the 2G scam. Just yesterday, I got the following email from a real estate insider who is well aware of what's cooking in each part of Mumbai. It wasn't news to me, so I didn't bother posting.
DB Realty policy is to focus on those projects which are six months away from completion. Considering the bad image the 2G scam and arrests have created, they want to complete a few projects at the earliest to calm the mind of financial insecurity in minds of investors and buyers. They would not be starting marine lines project till next year or till shahid or vinod goenka are released from jail.

And even if the promoters are not released in the near future, DB Realty will take over the India tower project since it is acquiring a 49% stake in DB Hospitality. Whether work will restart in the coming weeks or begin after the funding is secured will be decided after all the charges against the accused are framed on this Thursday.

Hmm - I see - I had this notion that this was a 100% crystal clear certified project - my bad. I'd been ranting about Waqf board a few times int the past before just because of this - so I take those back as well :)

While we're on the topic - not sure I got what you meant by

And even if the promoters are not released in the near future, DB Realty will take over the India tower project since it is acquiring a 49% stake in DB Hospitality. Whether work will restart in the coming weeks or begin after the funding is secured will be decided after all the charges against the accused are framed on this Thursday.

are you quoting an update in this quote? since I thought India Tower was a DB project from the start.

DB realty is a subsidary of DB hosp. right?

The India tower is owned by DB Hospitality and not DB Realty. No wonder there's no mention of the tower on DBR's website and their projects are still underway. They both operate under one roof in Goregaon but are separate companies.

DB Realty = Vinod Goenka + his family + Shahid Balwa + Neelkamal tower construction

DB Hospitality = Vinod Goenka + Shahid Balwa + Private equity funds (20%)

DBR being a publicly traded company has a whole board of directors who appointed Vinod Goenka's father to head the company.

DBH is unlisted on the exchange and doesn't have a board of directors. Both the promoters are in Tihar and that's why work on their hotel projects have been stopped.


The latest news is that DB Realty will be buying a 49% stake in DB Hospitality to kickstart their projects:

DB Realty to pick up 49% in hospitality arm (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/db-realty-to-pick49-in-hospitality-arm/445747/)

^^ That's a revelation - thanks man - I had no idea about the nuances that are driving the DH/DB shenanigans!! didnt mean to hijack this thread - but its good to know. Might be we can move the last few posts to the India tower discussion thread !! the situation is pretty gloomy - the Firms are rudderless PLUS there is the added headache of Waqf board that would need resolution - even it its out-of-court - it would definitely throw a spanner into any near startup timeline!!!

^^I seriously hope I don't get disappointed. I guess we will figure out the result tomorrow??

Lol...For a second, I though this was India Tower's thread...Since the discussion sidestepped to DB....

Can't wait to see India tower standing like this.

Background image is by gautam023 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/gautam023/6178113836/sizes/l/in/photostream/)
http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/5249/6178113836c003d5386cb.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/17/6178113836c003d5386cb.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

Nice!!...Yeah, I am almost counting days and wasting my precious time.

More News on DB's difficulties:

Source (http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/stocks-views/dont-investdb-realty-sandeep-jain_589910.html)

Do not invest in DB Realty , says Sandeep Jain of Trade swift Broking.

Jain told CNBC-Awaaz, "Investors should not invest in DB Realty. The stock is under pressure due to bad news."

He further added, "If investors want to invest in realty stocks they can invest in Oberoi Realty and Nagarjuna fertilisers . These stocks can give good return than DB Realty."

The company's trailing 12-month (TTM) EPS was at Rs 10.73 per share. (Jun 2011). The stock's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio was 5.18. The latest book value of the company is Rs 137.82 per share. At current value, the price-to-book value of the company was 0.4.

Can't wait to see India tower standing like this.

Background image is by gautam023 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/gautam023/6178113836/sizes/l/in/photostream/)
http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/5249/6178113836c003d5386cb.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/17/6178113836c003d5386cb.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)



This pic exaggerates the height of the tower. The tower will be about twice the height of the Imperial twin towers (shown in the pic)

How would the Imperials be half the height of a 720m tower? It's closer too 1/3rd.

But it may only be a slight exaggeration.

I adjusted india tower taking saifee hospital as 75m.
Using this accurate diagram of India tower. You cannot adjust it taking imperial towers as reference because it is almost double the distance from the point where this pic is taken.
Photos give perspective view :)

Here is that diagram.
http://img845.imageshack.us/img845/6063/unledwtq.jpg

Also Imperials are on a hill.

Can see the crane still installed.

Sept 24th 2011

Photo copyright: Vinay G
http://img819.imageshack.us/img819/2221/capturebaw.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/819/capturebaw.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

Hardly any progress,

http://s2.postimage.org/bil1axq0l/2011_09_30_12_24_22.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/) hosting images (http://www.postimage.org/)

WTF!!:cry:

DB realty is selling its property for Orchid Paradise and its 41% stake in DB towers...

Source (http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/cnbc-tv18-comments/db-realty-looking-to-sell-2-projects-to-raise-finance_592660.html)

What is the DB Towers as they mentioned, is it this Tower?!

No, it's their commercial project in the BKC:

http://img200.imageshack.us/img200/1198/elevationlarge.jpg

Guess that this is the reason
BMC stops work on DB’s 125-floor Charni Road hotel
Nauzer K Bharucha TNN

Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has put the brakes on DB Hospitality’s upcoming 125-storey luxury hotel at Charni Road in south Mumbai.
Touted as the tallest hotel building in India, work on the iconic India Tower (Park Hyatt Hotel) project was halted after the civic building proposals department issued a stop-work notice on May 25 last and demanded a premium of around Rs 200 crore from the developer. The project cost is Rs 2,800 crore.
During Praful Patel’s tenure as aviation minister, the Airports Authority of India sanctioned a height of 424m for the hotel. So far, only the basement work has been completed.
Trouble started about six months ago when the civic body demanded that the company pay premium and development charges running into a few hundred crores for the various building concessions it had sought. DB Hospitality wants to pay by 1970 rates: BMC chief
Mumbai: The BMC has issued a stopwork notice to DB Hospitality’s hotel project at Charni Road for failing to pay Rs 200 crore in arrears. Civic sources said the demand of Rs 460 crore was reduced to Rs 212 crore when portions of the building were included in the floor space index (FSI), the ratio of total built up area vis-a-vis plot size.
DB moved the Bombay high court (HC), saying the premium was Rs 20 crore. It urged the court to save it against “unwarranted cost escalations due to illegal stop work” and “save loss to the national GDP”.
DB Hospitality is part of the DB Group, whose chairman Vinod Goenka and MD Shahid Balwa are in jail for alleged involvement in the 2G scam. The hotel will be operated by the Hyatt chain and will also have service apartments and a shopping arcade.
“The court will strike down BMC’s demand. We are on the right side of law,” said N Shridhar, DB’s group director (strategy and finance).
The BMC said the premium was levied on non-habitable areas. Municipal commissioner Subodh Kumar said DB must pay the premium, calculated at 25% of the latest ready-reckoner rate. “DB wants the rate fixed at what prevailed in 1970, which is 10%,” Kumar told TOI.
On March 7, 2011, the developer’s architect approached the BMC to work out premium for deficiency of open space as per the development control (DC) regulation of 1967. A few weeks later, the BMC told the developer that the premium could not be considered. It said payment must be as per the prevailing ready-reckoner rate based on the DC rule of 1991, which is 25%.
The new rate worked out to Rs 2,200 per sq ft, as against Rs 500 per sq ft towards development charges under section 124 K of the MRTP Act, 1966, which was amended by the state government last year. On May 25, the BMC issued a stop-work notice as the building’s commencement certificate was endorsed as per amended plans. “The permission will be granted only if the developer complies with all conditions and deposits the premium as per rules, regulations and policies in force,” said executive engineer Sanjay Darade in an affidavit to the HC.
DB said the BMC levied a premium of 25% of ready-reckoner rates of 2010, as against 10% rates of 2009 “without authority of law and in clear contravention of a state government order”. It said the certificate, withheld as it challenged the premium amount, should be endorsed as per amended approved plans “at least for construction of basements plus 30 floors”. Over a decade ago, the plot was reserved for a civic school playground. But the BMC did not buy it because of high costs and reservation on the plot lapsed.
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOIM/2011/10/01/3/Img/Pc0031800.jpg

If money is the only reason for it being on hold then I hope it is not that big a bad news, or is it?

^^

I think this is a big relief .. so they are waiting for the court decision and the money involved is alos not too big for them.. this is kind of a good news. Hope the court decision comes soon !!

Yup, seems like things should fall in place soon.

didnt BMC demand a similar request from another project? The Oberoi project that was stalled and the Supreme court ruled in Oberoi's favor? That took a a while - is BMC justified in demanding these fees?

DB's share is at all time low, now at Rs 49. They have crashed from Rs 450 when the 2G crisis began..... i don't know how much more will they fall..

didnt BMC demand a similar request from another project? The Oberoi project that was stalled and the Supreme court ruled in Oberoi's favor? That took a a while - is BMC justified in demanding these fees?

No, that was over the ownership of the land. The BMC claimed they owned the land and leased it out to Glaxo.

Anyhow, If the tower is on hold because of the BMC, then I don't give two hoots about the 2g case anymore :nocrook:

But from the pictures we have, it looks like work had pretty much stopped in April itself - much before the alleged May 25 stop work notice.

14 Oct, 2011, 06.25AM IST, Kailash Babar,Kailash Babar

DB Hospitality to raise Rs 1,000 cr by selling stake in properties

MUMBAI: Dynamix Balwas Group's DB Hospitality, in which DB Realty recently picked up 49% stake, is planning to raise over Rs 1,000 crore by selling stake either in the hotel company or any of its three operational and eight under-construction properties, said sources close the development.

DB Hospitality plans to complete the fund raising exercise by March-end , and the funds raised by selling stake in the hospitality venture are expected to provide liquidity support to the realty business as well.

DB Hospitality confirmed the move in an email response to ET, but did not specify the quantum of funds that could be raised. "The company is currently restructuring its hospitality assets whereby we intend to attract investments at our holding company level or at individual hotel level, depending on investor appetite and requirements.

The money thus raised will go towards the hotel projects development /implementation," said a DB Hospitality spokesperson. DB Hospitality plans to build 2,800 rooms in its hotel properties across the country by the end of 2015. Currently, it has three operational properties - Grand Hyatt in Goa with 315 rooms, Hilton in Mumbai with 171 rooms and Le Meridian in Ahmedabad with 63 rooms.

Apart from these, the company has eight more hotels at various stages of implementation in five cities and expects them to be operational in the next 3-4 years. The company is open to diluting stake in the holding company or standalone projects.

But it will sell stake in an operational property only if the offer is at a significant premium, sources said. At least, seven entities, including private equity firms, are already in talks with DB Hospitality for picking up stake.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/services/property-/-cstruction/db-hospitality-to-raise-rs-1000-cr-by-selling-stake-in-properties/articleshow/10348622.cms

So I guess this is good news for India Tower? I really don't get the bussiness structure of DB.

Yes, it gives the promoters of the DB Hospitality (who are in jail and own a 80% stake) a chance to exit the company and let it function independently.

DB Group has some 50-60 subsidiaries ranging from telecom(2g scam) to real estate to aviation (they own planes/helis) but only their real estate business is listed on the stock exchange.

Well Awesome!!! That is really good news. A sure step in the right direction. Thank you IU!

so ye building banegi ya nahi?
http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/3713/indiatower.jpg

so ye building banegi ya nahi?
http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/3713/indiatower.jpg

Not unless a substantial stake (Benami ofcourse) is given to top mantri's (monkeys) of the ruling party.Sharad pawar will take advantage of the situation and have Goenka and Balwa reduce their stake and corner it himself or pass it on to someone else in the party.(After all High Command bhi to koi cheez hai - Samajnewaloh ko ishaara kafi...... and all that)

16thJune2011:

Pretty old article, just wanted to HIGHLIGHT a few architectural points here.

http://www.nce.co.uk/pictures/586xAny/8/5/6/1257856_Doka_India_Tower.jpg

India's mega-tower on hold
16 June 2011 | By NCE Editorial


Construction work on Mumbai’s India Towers project was put on hold this week because of financing problems.


The delay is the latest in a series of setbacks for the 720m tall tower, which is set to be the second tallest in the world after Dubai’s Burj Khalifa.

The development has undergone several design changes and names, having previously been known as the Park Hyatt Tower and DB Tower. Developer DB Hospitality is investing £700M in the scheme.

Hotel operator Park Hyatt has already signed up to operate the hotel section of the mixed use development.

Work on the building’s foundations began last year. But it is not known how long the construction work is on hold for. DB Hospitality was unavailable for comment.

DB Hospitality wants to complete the tower in around 42 months. It will comprise a hotel, luxury apartments and retail space. The developer has already let several contracts, including the appointment of temporary works specialist Doka.

Construction is challenging and will consist of three cast insitu concrete cores which continually tapers. This means that the formwork will need to re-adjusted every storey.

If construction re-starts Doka will be using 2,785m2 of large area formwork, with 173 automatic climbers to help erect it.

Source (http://www.nce.co.uk/news/international/indias-mega-tower-on-hold/8616147.article)

It's been quite confusing here for quite a long time...can someone give a definite explanation about what's going on? If the project has been abandoned, what they gonna on the site?

Source (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=84297328&postcount=1363)

This is the reason for on hold.

Trouble started about six months ago when the civic body demanded that the company pay premium and development charges running into a few hundred crores for the various building concessions it had sought. DB Hospitality wants to pay by 1970 rates: BMC chief
Mumbai: The BMC has issued a stopwork notice to DB Hospitality’s hotel project at Charni Road for failing to pay Rs 200 crore in arrears. Civic sources said the demand of Rs 460 crore was reduced to Rs 212 crore when portions of the building were included in the floor space index (FSI), the ratio of total built up area vis-a-vis plot size.
DB moved the Bombay high court (HC), saying the premium was Rs 20 crore. It urged the court to save it against “unwarranted cost escalations due to illegal stop work” and “save loss to the national GDP”

Depressing :ohno: And are they gonna replace it with another project?

Depressing :ohno: And are they gonna replace it with another project?

The project is "ON HOLD". We need an official confirmation, and thus we cannot consider the project as scrapped. Also as DS rightly shared, those were some of the petty reasons for it to go on hold. DB will fight back and surely this will resume. Only prob here is we do not how far and whats internally going on. Lets just be patient and wait.:ohno:

I keep hearing BMC's stop notice paralyzed this project - but like someone corrected me - the WAQF board's objection on the project was also responsible.
Now I'm not sure which one's more relevant based on Deek's post.

Has the waqf board issue been resolved?

Its over guys, screw this.

India Tower will likely be shelved or cut short to 296 m.

www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_bmc-cuts-short-db-groups-iconic-125-storey-luxury-hotel-project_1610212

I hate BMC now, its run by a bunch of assholes, they wont let Mumbai modernise as long as they have their seats.

That's just a recycled article with added quotes from "highly placed sources". The High Court will decide the tower's fate, not the BMC. There's no reason to give up so soon.

From the same article:

A DB Hospitality spokesperson said the matter is pending in the high court and that the company cannot comment on an issue that is sub judice. “However, DB Hospitality is fully committed to execute the project,” he said.

but if high court goes against db group then the project is gone..

I hope India Tower rises fast. I just want it to be completed. It will rule the world.

Hey guys...after long time here...

Hey people I got a call today regarding C.P meeting to discuss 3 projects..on saturday...which Includes India Tower Mumbai with other being Raheja Revanta and Wave City Noida...

So hopefully may get the final peep into the status of the project...


I personally really want to see this project rise...hope to give you some good news...

^^Gonna be counting seconds for your reply regarding this Tower after your meeting...

MOD waiting for good news from u

Even im waiting for a postive update from you. I am being apprehensive of a good news after your meet.

...

:ohno::cry:

v sad....im thoroughly disappointed :-(:-(

Alright, this just made my day very bad. Now let me go find a room and :wallbash:

such a wonderful project gone...why do they disappoint us like this..better they dont plan such projects and disappoint all

yeah, I would rather keep no faith for the future of Mumbai than to hope for and get disappointed. BMC just killed the only project with an FSI of more than 6. The norm for skyscraper cities is 8.

yeah, I would rather keep no faith for the future of Mumbai than to hope for and get disappointed. But in this case, BMC is the only one to blame, for other projects too. It killed the only project with an FSI of more than 6. The norm for skyscraper cities is 8.

Its nothing to do with BMC, this was waiting to happen. DB is just running out of cash. They were just spreading rumors with all the court cases and other excuses to keep their share prices up. Nothing is happening at their other sites too , be it Turf view,Orchid heights, the one at prabhadevi. Expect all of them to be sold to other builders in time to come

Guys We have been asked to stop marketing for DB Tower ....in our CP meeting....It has not been shelved completely though...We might get a revised project...


There's nothing to market in this project. The entire tower will be managed by Hyatt - the hotel and the residences.

Its nothing to do with BMC, this was waiting to happen. DB is just running out of cash. They were just spreading rumors with all the court cases and other excuses to keep their share prices up. Nothing is happening at their other sites too , be it Turf view,Orchid heights, the one at prabhadevi. Expect all of them to be sold to other builders in time to come

They are running out of cash, that's true BUT the court cases are legit. Due to the 2g scam there is a chance that their properties are now going to be attached as well:

Nov 8: Adjudicating Authority to give ruling on ED attachment orders (http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_adjudicating-authority-to-give-ruling-on-ed-attachment-orders_1609580)

There's nothing to market in this project. The entire tower will be managed by Hyatt - the hotel and the residences.




They are running out of cash, that's true BUT the court cases are legit. Due to the 2g scam there is a chance that their properties are now going to be attached as well:

Nov 8: Adjudicating Authority to give ruling on ED attachment orders (http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_adjudicating-authority-to-give-ruling-on-ed-attachment-orders_1609580)


Humn....There's more to market bro..!!! Market is not only to sell .....investors are there as well...

And don't lose hope yet yaar...project band nahi hua hai...

but mod u only said there will be revision of the project..means obviously new design..and new height..

but mod u only said there will be revision of the project..means obviously new design..and new height..

I said Might
....the situation is weak..that's what i can say at the moment ...

Humn....There's more to market bro..!!! Market is not only to sell .....investors are there as well...

And don't lose hope yet yaar...project band nahi hua hai...


You are in the property dealing side of the real estate industry, so I assumed investing=buying an apartment. That's why I mentioned that Hyatt will take care of the residences.

As far as the actual investment to build the tower goes, what you've said is nothing new. DB Hospitality announced last month (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/db-hospitality-to-raise-rs-1000-cr/148935/on) that they will offload some stake in existing and U/C properties to fund their new projects. The realty arm is also going to make an investment into DBH in the range of 500-600 crores over a period of 2-3 years.

Its over guys, screw this.

India Tower will likely be shelved or cut short to 296 m.

www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_bmc-cuts-short-db-groups-iconic-125-storey-luxury-hotel-project_1610212

I hate BMC now, its run by a bunch of assholes, they wont let Mumbai modernise as long as they have their seats.

Can't expect more than this in a country that's been destroyed completely by the bureaucracy and corruption since past 60 years. Time to move on, there will not be a single skyscraper above 500 m build in India in our lifetime if this same politics and system continues :mad::mad:

^^Thats what worries me, I wanna see a changed India before I die. I wanna see numerous supertalls and high speed railways and effing awesome infrastructure. I highly doubt it will happen.

Did anyone notice CTBUH calls India Tower as Const. Stopped, how come they get to know the status before we do, before it said it was on hold. Now it says its stopped...Do they have exclusive rights to know the status for any supertall from the developer or do they take up an assumption from facts?

Sad, sad day. :ohno::ohno:

I keep hearing BMC's stop notice paralyzed this project - but like someone corrected me - the WAQF board's objection on the project was also responsible.
Now I'm not sure which one's more relevant based on Deek's post.

Has the waqf board issue been resolved?

Didnt hear back on this - so Is it the Rs 485 crore Demand by BMC that was the final scuttle? Or the Waqf board litigation? or the 2G scam? If its all three equally - was there any hope right from the onset?

Its primarily the 486 crores premium disagreement with the BMC that has stopped this project.

The 2G scam would be a future obstruction.

Here's a timeline:

February 8: Shahid Balwa got arrested
April 11: CG posted (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=75860587&postcount=889) a pic with the site buzzing with activity
April 20: Vinod Goenka got arrested
April 21: CG posted (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=76441235&postcount=927) a pic with just 1 worker at the site

From the above events, you can gauge what's the primary reason for the tower being on hold at the moment. The BMC is the 2nd in line while the waqf is just a petty issue that snowballed due to politics.


@dunefreezer - CTBUH gets all its information from SSC.

^^Thanks IU...

For the reason, it could be coincidence on the timescale with the arrests.....It is quite clear, the work was stopped because of the Stop Work Notice by the BMC back in April.

I never should have loved this tower too much, Now I feel like I lost my Love!! Devastated.

The two issues didn't coincide. The BMC decision came later in May:

May 17: Stop work on Marine Lines project: Govt (http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-05-17/mumbai/29551518_1_wakf-board-wakf-act-wakf-property)
The state government on Monday instructed the Wakf Board and the BMC to immediately issue a stop-work notice to a project being constructed by the D B Hospitality at Marine Lines in south Mumbai.

May 25: BMC stops work on DB’s 125-floor Charni Road hotel (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=84297328&postcount=1363)
Touted as the tallest hotel building in India, work on the iconic India Tower (Park Hyatt Hotel) project was halted after the civic building proposals department issued a stop-work notice on May 25 last and demanded a premium of around Rs 200 crore from the developer.

wow....yeah, that doesn't make sense, about the work being stopped way before they got the Notice.

^^ Anyone else smell corruption?

Effer, let's leave it right here. People can form their own conclusions from all the facts and details that have been posted in this thread over the past couple of months.

If you want to gossip about it, then feel free to type it down in a blog, not here. TY.

@Everyone - unnecessary posts will be deleted henceforth. Only updates/news related to the tower will be kept.

Hi CG, Can you get a pics of India Tower Site??? We would like to see it once.

Hi CG, Can you get a pics of India Tower Site??? We would like to see it once.

I see it everyday man from outside ofcz, the crane been in the same position for days. Now water tankers are kept parked in the front of the gate.Its really dead.

Self Deleted: Probably irrelevant (Bail to Vinod Goenka)

More relevant is yesterday's news - Shahid Balwa is out on bail. He was the main promoter who got the land for this project and other DBR projects.

And just after his release, news about DBR's Bandra promenade project being kickstarted was published (http://www.mumbaimirror.com/index.aspx?page=article&sectid=15&contentid=2011113020111130033341751a7017ec4) so that's definitely good news since it indicates which way the projects in their pipeline are heading. Now only if the BMC issue is sorted then it is game ON.

a couple of contractors for the tower:

Axis Facades (http://www.facades.com/) - for the facade design and curtain wall engineering - the tower is listed on this guy's linkedin profile (http://ae.linkedin.com/pub/vijith-nambiar-kp/a/a34/81a)

IHD (http://www.ihd-hk.com) - for the "Audio-Visual, Acoustics, IT, Security, PBX System Design" - the tower is listed in their projects PDF (http://www.ihd-hk.com/download/ihd_profile_eng.pdf)

This project is like the X-files...... I want to believe

IL&FS investment arm, IIML is re-evaluating its stake in DB Hospitality.

Sources tell NDTV that its PE partner, IL&FS investment manager, is reviewing value of its stake in DB Hospitality, after investing nearly Rs 100 crore in 2006 and picking up 10 per cent stake in the hotels segment. But now they are assessing their entire value and could look for an exit at Rs 200 crore.

Project delays are making these assets unviable and hence ILFS could exit but the big question is will they find buyers?

This is a view that could have been from the DB Hotel at Marine Drive in South Mumbai but with the group facing cash crunch, this project is delayed along with others which are yet to see the completion deadline.

DB Hospitality owns Grand Hyatt (Goa), Hilton (Mumbai), Le Meridian (Ahmedabad) and operates 900 rooms in 4 hotels. But with 8 hotels under construction in 5 cities, experts feel that DB hospitality is a bottomless jar where money will keep flowing out.

“DB hospitality right now will take easily 6-7 yrs to break even, it doesn’t have the wherewithal to finish its projects,” said Ashwini Kakkad, executive VC at Mercury Travels.

But with the group's promoters out of judicial custody, there could be a turn around. But will that need a five star performance to turn the fortunes around for the company.

http://profit.ndtv.com/News/Article/il-fs-investment-managers-may-exit-db-hospitality-293745

I wouldn't place much emphasis on ILFS' news since their stake is pretty low. What matters is that the promoters are back in business.

DB Realty names Vinod Goenka as executive chairman (http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-12-10/news/30502205_1_db-realty-vinod-goenka-executive-chairman)

DB Realty Ltd. said it has named Vinod Goenka as executive chairman and managing director, and Shahid Balwa as vice chairman and managing director from Saturday, weeks after they were granted bail on charges over telecom licences.

Balwa, Goenka and DB Realty are among the fourteen individuals and 3 companies charged over a 2007/08 grant of telecoms licences which a state auditor said cost the government up to $39 billion in revenue.

IL&FS investment arm, IIML is re-evaluating its stake in DB Hospitality.

...........“DB hospitality right now will take easily 6-7 yrs to break even, it doesn’t have the wherewithal to finish its projects,” said Ashwini Kakkad, executive VC at Mercury Travels.
http://profit.ndtv.com/News/Article/il-fs-investment-managers-may-exit-db-hospitality-293745

[:wtf:] what makes Ashwini Kakkar an expert? He's not a real estate expert. Having 10 years in a travel company is hardly a qualification to pontificate. (he used to be head of Thomas Cook earlier)

DB Realty gains after reappointing 2G accused founders

2G scam accused Shahid Balwa. Reuters
Shares in realtor DB Realty rose as much as 5.74 percent after the company said it appointed Vinod Goenka as executive chairman and managing director, and Shahid Balwa as vice-chairman and managing director from Saturday , two analysts said.

The Supreme Court had granted bail to both the executives charged in a telecom licensing scandal. The move is expected to help the company bring its stalled projects back on track, said one of the analysts.

http://www.firstpost.com/fwire/db-realty-gains-after-reappointing-2g-accused-founders-153982.html

Another Contractor:

KLD (http://kldesign.co/project/on-the-board/india-tower--park-hyatt-mumbai-india-2014-/) - Klaasen Lighting Design (They have a couple of excellent interior lighting renders as I have posted below)

I hope these images are for the India Tower and I'm not mistaken. Can anyone check if it is right, I think it is right by the looks of the background as the shoreline curves and from the slanted support columns.

Renders from KLD
http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/4716/indiatowerinterior2.jpg
By dunefreezer (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/dunefreezer) at 2011-12-30
http://img94.imageshack.us/img94/9598/indiatowerinterior1.jpg
By dunefreezer (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/dunefreezer) at 2011-12-30

Another Contractor:

KLD (http://kldesign.co/project/on-the-board/india-tower--park-hyatt-mumbai-india-2014-/) - Klaasen Lighting Design (They have a couple of excellent interior lighting renders as I have posted below)

I hope these images are for the India Tower and I'm not mistaken. Can anyone check if it is right, I think it is right by the looks of the background as the shoreline curves and from the slanted support columns.

Renders from KLD
http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/4716/indiatowerinterior2.jpg
By dunefreezer (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/dunefreezer) at 2011-12-30
http://img94.imageshack.us/img94/9598/indiatowerinterior1.jpg
By dunefreezer (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/dunefreezer) at 2011-12-30

yes, it is for the India tower, but do you have any idea of when it was posted??

Who knows, I am guessing last year or the beginning of this year. Since it an designing firm, they don't tell you when those renders were posted.

I just posted it for the renders and wasn't trying to prove India Tower project is still alive. I doubt we will be able to get any info on the status of this tower until March end 2012, that's when DB Hospitality's Fund Raising ends.

I feel so bad for India to get its hopes up for this tower just to have it crushed last year. I wish its developers would say something conclusive about the future of this tower instead of making everyone wait for a potential future heartbreak again. If/when they release any more info... Good luck, India! :)

on hold indefinately

:bash::bash::bash:

So wait, the original 700m+ triangular design isnt going to be built...?

The posts before yours ^^doesn't make sense at all.

When they started building the foundation, it was meant for the 700m design and until now that is the design in their bag pack. Unless DB Group is forced to reduce the height by the civic body, only then there is a chance of changing the design or possibly canceling the project.

Well according to a new study, skyscraper boom spells trouble for the economy and there is a very "unhealthy" correlation between the building of skyscrapers and economic crash.

Could this be a blessing in disguise?

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/architecture/shadows-on-the-horizon-the-rise-and-rise-of-skyscrapers-6288162.html

^^ There really is no relation between economic trouble and skyscraper boom. There will always be economic slowdowns in some parts of the world. This doesnt mean that they were caused by skyscraper construction.

Its like when they said MMR vaccine causes autism. Corrolation doesnt mean causation. (sorry for terrible example, but it works.)

what a pity this one is still On Hold :(. i've the feeling this one will never be build...at least not with 700m or more.

In Limbo - The India Tower The India Tower, potentially the world's second tallest, has been in postponement since 2011

17 JAN 2012 Jon Walton


The India Tower project is one of the latest in a long line of major construction works that have been put on indefinite hold due to the volatile building industry and financial uncertainty.

The Tower will be the second tallest in the world, behind the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, if it is completed in 2016 as scheduled. Located in Mumbai, the impressive structure is planned to rise over 2,300 feet into the Indian skyline, with 126 stories of hotel, residential, and retail space.

The project has gone through many evolutions over the last few years. Previously known as the Park Hyatt Tower, the project was first proposed by the Dynamix Balwas realtor group in 2008 as a more modest 85-story, 988 foot-tall tower.

Construction began on the latest iteration, designed by Fosters + Partners, in 2010, but was put on hold the following year with no word about changes to the projected completion date, or whether the project will continue at all.

The continued delays come as a new round of research by Barclays Capital has surfaced showing high correlations between skyscraper construction and economic crises. According the report’s analyst, “India, it seems, is playing catch-up… If history proves to be right, this building boom in China and India could simply be a reflection of a misallocation of capital, which may result in an economic correction in the next five years.”

India’s economy, the third largest in Asia, is showing signs of slowing in economic growth, potentially signaling financial instability in future months. While no official announcement has been made concerning the fate of the India Tower, all signs point to continued postponement and a potential scrapping of the entire project – leaving the Shanghai Tower safely in second place for the world’s tallest buildings upon its completion in 2014.

http://www.constructiondigital.com/under_construction/in-limbo-the-india-tower

Guys a little piece of news ...insider news I wanted to share ....work on India tower would be starting again very soon....that's according to info we are getting ...so keeping my fingers crossed...
Cheers

That would be great news. Lets hope its true :cheers:

Good news, but I'm not getting my hopes up.

Ohh...MoD please keep giving such good news....:)..Hope that becomes a reality...

work on India Tower would start sooner or later just like Signature tower of Hyderabad...both the towers have the site prepared...

Good news :cheers:

Guys a little piece of news ...insider news I wanted to share ....work on India tower would be starting again very soon....that's according to info we are getting ...so keeping my fingers crossed...
Cheers

Great! By "very soon", how long are you talking about? Sometime before February? Or weeks, perhaps months?

work on India Tower would start sooner or later just like Signature tower of Hyderabad...both the towers have the site prepared...

Yeah but India Tower is at a much advanced stage.

Also. L&T posted a job on LinkedIn for project manager of a 100 story tower in the second week of this month. Now they removed it. So assuming it is for the India Tower they might have hired somebody.

And India101, I'm with you. I'm never gonna gain my hopes for this tower until at least half of this tower is completed.

Yeah but India Tower is at a much advanced stage.

Also. L&T posted a job on LinkedIn for project manager of a 100 story tower in the second week of this month. Now they removed it. So assuming it is for the India Tower they might have hired somebody.

And India101, I'm with you. I'm never gonna gain my hopes for this tower until at least half of this tower is completed.

i was sarcastic

Guys a little piece of news ...insider news I wanted to share ....work on India tower would be starting again very soon....that's according to info we are getting ...so keeping my fingers crossed...
Cheers


Please let this be true :cheers:

Awesome! Fingers crossed on this one. Please please please!!!!

Guys a little piece of news ...insider news I wanted to share ....work on India tower would be starting again very soon....that's according to info we are getting ...so keeping my fingers crossed...
Cheers

Source??

There is no source, at this point We need to trust MOD's words. Hes been right about everything so far. Besides there are complications with being an insider.

Not sure how they would surmount both the Enforcement Directorate reports of "attaching" DB Realty's properties as part of 2G scam And Waqf board's claim over the India Tower land (http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=pastissues2&BaseHref=TOIM/2011/05/17&PageLabel=3&EntityId=Ar00300&ViewMode=HTML).

Hope they do sort it out - and this time get it right!

Not sure how they would surmount both the Enforcement Directorate reports of "attaching" DB Realty's properties as part of 2G scam And Waqf board's claim over the India Tower land (http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=pastissues2&BaseHref=TOIM/2011/05/17&PageLabel=3&EntityId=Ar00300&ViewMode=HTML).

Hope they do sort it out - and this time get it right!

This is pretty old issue..The main issue was DB reality should pay around 200 crores as arrears for BMC..

There is no source, at this point We need to trust MOD's words. Hes been right about everything so far. Besides there are complications with being an insider.

No offense to MOD, but I'm not buying his (or anyone elses for that matter) words without a legitimate source confirming it.

insiders dont have names dude....anyways got this info from a trusted source of mine...n i sincerely believe this...lets see

insiders dont have names dude....anyways got this info from a trusted source of mine...n i am sincerely believe this...lets see

Can you tell us the approximate date that construction is expected to resume according to your source?

i m exited again....and no i dont care about the source ....
hope it will rise to its full height !!
such a grt visionary project ....

very nice :)

This is pretty old issue..The main issue was DB reality should pay around 200 crores as arrears for BMC..

Old doesn't mean its over. Wakf board has a history (http://www.google.com/search?q=wakf+board+property+dispute&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a)of disputed properties (http://www.sunday-guardian.com/investigation/brave-couple-fight-to-save-wakf-land) that takes time to resolve - since I don't hear about their case (as opposed to 2G which seems more prominent) - I hope its not something that will cause any delay if MoD's report comes true.

The delay is probably a blessing in disguise. It'll allow the transport infrastructure to catch up. Even if this project were to complete as per original schedule, where is the infrastructure to service such a colossal tower?

There needs to be a massive push to resolve the traffic and transport issues in Mumbai, as its only going to get worse. The metro project is too little too late. Lack of infrastructure is stalling growth levels.

So if the tower is delayed by another few years, its not a bad thing.

insiders dont have names dude....anyways got this info from a trusted source of mine...n i sincerely believe this...lets see

not dissing u or your source but as far as my contacts go the news is that this tower is on hold indefinately.
reasons are that investor confidence in india is also on hold cos of slowing economy, eratic governence -eg changing FSI rules-,and political instability. that doesnt mean a coup or anything daft,its just that investors are now wondering if their cash will get swallowed up in yet another corruption scam.
my guess in that it wont restart for at least another 2-3 years
:cheers:

......reasons are that investor confidence in india is also on hold cos of slowing economy, eratic governence -eg changing FSI rules-,and political instability. that doesnt mean a coup or anything daft,its just that investors are now wondering if their cash will get swallowed up in yet another corruption scam.
my guess in that it wont restart for at least another 2-3 years
:cheers:

I agree. Much as I would LOVE to see the work begin again, I wouldn't be holding my breath. But hey - miracles do happen sometimes and maybe this project might catch a break?!!

I agree. Much as I would LOVE to see the work begin again, I wouldn't be holding my breath. But hey - miracles do happen sometimes and maybe this project might catch a break?!!
^^ Good username/post combo

someday i hope to see this structure stand tall and handsome

Finally an update from the Media.

Source (http://business-standard.com/india/news/we-dont-have-specific-assetblock-n-sridhar/465957/)
We don't have specific asset on block: N sridhar


Mumbai-based DB Realty faced several headwinds after its promoters were sent to jail in connection with their alleged role in the 2G telecom spectrum allocation case. N sridhar, group director (business strategy & finance) played a key role in managing the property and hospitality business of the company in the absence of the promoters. Raghavendra Kamath spoke to him about the state of DB Realty projects and the way ahead for the company, within days of Etisalat DB (the telecom joint venture of the group with UAE’s Etisalat) announcing closure. Edited excerpts:

What is the progress on the Bandra MIG project in Mumbai? When will you start that?
DB Realty plans to launch the MIG project in the current financial year. We are in the process of getting the necessary approvals and are fully equipped to execute the project.

- DB Realty sees no financial impact from Etisalat exit
- DB Realty tanks 6% at Etisalat shuts shop
- DB Realty net falls to Rs 12 cr
- New operators shocked by SC verdict, may file review petition
- DB Realty official supports his statement to CBI
- Stocks of controversial groups beaten down in 2011

When will you complete your projects such as Orchid Turf View, Orchid Crown and others in South Mumbai which have faced environmental issues and regulatory hurdles?
With the new regulatory changes (changes in development control rules), we are looking at optimising these projects as per the new norms and securing fresh approvals wherever required. Work continues at most of our projects based on the permissions that we have already obtained.


What about the ones such as Orchid Woods, Orchid Suburbia and Orchid Ozone in western suburbs of Mumbai?
The Mahul project—with 8.7 million sq ft —is on schedule for completion by end March 2012. Orchid Ozone, Dahisar —with 2.6 million sq ft —will be completed in a phased manner starting from June 2014, a year ahead of schedule. Orchid Woods, Goregaon (E) —1.2 million sq ft, is nearing completion and will be completed and delivered in this calendar year. All other DB Realty projects are on stream, the company remains committed to completion and delivery of its projects within stipulated time frames.

The BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) had issued a stop-work notice to your hotel project in Marine Lines and the government cancelled higher FSI (floor space index) in your Pune project. What is the status on that?
In our hotel project, there was a difference in interpretation by the government and by us on the levy of premiums. The matter is currently in court; so we cannot comment on it. But we expect a positive outcome. In Pimpri-Chinchwad New township Development Authority project, we have gone for an appeal in the High Court, we expect a favourable outcome and FSI to be granted, keeping the prevalent regulations in mind.

There is a buzz that you are selling your hotel properties and some projects in property business.
They are all baseless speculations. We are not selling any hotels or any properties. On a regular basis we keep evaluating non productive assets which do not generate cash flows and we will continue to optimise all cash generating assets. We are not planning to sell any specific asset either in hospitality or in real estate and have no specific asset on the block for sale.

How many of such non-productive assets have you identified?
On a regular basis, we keep evaluating assets. If we find a good value proposition for disposing them, we may look at the same. As of now, we have not identified any assets to be sold.

What are the headwinds you are facing given the overall economic environment and your image?
Given the current slowdown and tightness in liquidity, it is a challenge to raise funds going forward. As far as DB Realty goes, we have very low gearing. We have gearing of 0.08 to our net worth, leaving us ample headroom to raise funds. As you are aware, most of our projects under execution are sold between 45-90 per cent and thus the collection from the same is adequate for fulfiling our project execution. Wherever there is a minor gap we raise debt for construction finance in specific projects.

How has the whole controversy regarding 2G scam impacted the brand and image of the company? What are you doing to negate that perception?
DB Realty is in the business of real estate development and has no direct or indirect share holding in Etisalat DB. The promoters of DB Realty in their individual capacity invested in Etisalat DB, a company engaged in telecom business. Both the entities are separate and have nothing to do with each other at all. Though the brand has taken a beating in the last one year, buyers, investors and other stake holders through constant communication know that DB Realty’s operations and financials are not impacted by the ongoing 2G proceedings.

How will the shutting down of Etisalat DB impact DB Realty?
Etisalat’s decision to shut down the operations of its Indian joint venture was taken independently by Etisalat UAE and this decision has no bearing or impact on the financials of DB Realty. This matter is for Etisalat DB to comment on as it is not related to DB Realty and there is no connection between the two entities whatsoever.

No suit or claim has been filed against DB Realty since it was never party to any agreements or otherwise. DB Realty was and remains an independent corporate entity managed by a professional team. DB Realty is in the business of real estate development and has no direct or indirect share holding in Etisalat DB. The promoters of DB Realty in their individual capacity invested in Etisalat DB, a company engaged in telecom business. Both the entities are separate and have nothing to do with each other at all.

So it looks like it is still in court. Does it take months or something to clear a case, as I hear?
Looks like they are expecting a positive outcome, so it makes sense when MoD said they might resume construction again. Guess they are preparing for it.

dude the wording in these articles is so incredibly vague dones anyone agree with me?

You never know, some court cases take years. :(

wont take years.


Db's stock in general seems to have recovered a lot in the past months. (though its the same case with the rest of the market)

and they are still making a profit and they have low debts compared to a DLF


I think they should be able to finish this project after the court case.

no this is excellent news!
remember earlier we had though Enforcement Directorate had attached many DB properties because of the 2g scam - which would have pretty much scuttled this project.

this implies its probably a legal battle b/w DB and BMC (no surprise there - BMC seems to be throwing in a spanner in all high FSI projects) - after all the biddings etc were completed!! BMC's new "Give us more premium for every vertical X FSI breached" mantra is probably the cause (folks can correct or amend this)

Also - I don't read anything about Wakf board which had come up with its version (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/karmayog/message/72341?l=1) of "its our land - illegally acquired we want to build a religious structure there " dimension - which would have been a greater source for concern!!!

I don't think Marine Lines Project is attached in connection to the 2G scam.

Source (http://www.smetimes.in/smetimes/news/indian-economy-news/2012/Feb/23/2g-case-court-notice-to-govt-on-property-attachment626944.html)
...The five companies named in the ED order include DB Realty, Eversmile Constructions Pvt. Ltd., Conwood Construction and Dynamix Realty

The properties and bank accounts that have been ordered to be attached, include land in Yerwada near Pune, unsold properties at an upscale Mumbai mall and flats worth crores of rupees in Mumbai.

As per the order, the land at Yerwada, worth Rs.13 crore, is owned by Eversmile. Another property worth Rs.23 crore at Shagun Mall on Gen. A.K. Vaidya Marg, is owned by Conwood. Two flats owned by DB Realty in Mumbai, worth Rs.1 crore each, and another flat at Orchid Breeze at Bandra, owned by Nihar Constructions, have also been ordered to be attached...

Source (http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/Bribe-to-Kalaignar-TV-Delhi-HC-issues-notice-to-Centre-ED/Article1-815389.aspx)
...The value of properties attached of these companies are Dynamix Realty (Rs 134 crore), Conwood Construction and Developers (Rs 22 crore), Nihar Constructions (Rs 1.10 crore), DB Realty (Rs 52 crore) and Eversmile Construction Company (Rs 13 crore)...

Can anyone verify this?

The real problem here is the Premium.

DB Realty wants to pay 20 Crore. BMC wants them to pay 200 Cr. BMC states it has reduced the premium (http://ressex.blog.com/2011/10/01/bswodfc/) from 416 crores to 200 Crores and isn't budging.
Ultimately - if the case isn't resolved fast- I'm guessing they'll reach a compromise and restart the work. Either way, DB's defence seems very flimsy (underlined) - dont know how they think they'll win the case!


The BMC has issued a stopwork notice to DB Hospitality’s hotel project at Charni Road for failing to pay Rs 200 crore in arrears. Civic sources said the demand of Rs 460 crore was reduced to Rs 212 crore when portions of the building were included in the floor space index (FSI), the ratio of total built up area vis-a-vis plot size.
DB moved the Bombay high court (HC), saying the premium was Rs 20 crore. It urged the court to save it against “unwarranted cost escalations due to illegal stop work” and “save loss to the national GDP”.

The BMC said the premium was levied on non-habitable areas. Municipal commissioner Subodh Kumar said DB must pay the premium, calculated at 25% of the latest ready-reckoner rate. “DB wants the rate fixed at what prevailed in 1970, which is 10%,” Kumar told TOI.

hmm will depend on the quality of the lawyer.

I think if DB does win against the BMC it will set a new precedent. More and more builders will goto court.

Also - I don't read anything about Wakf board which had come up with its version (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/karmayog/message/72341?l=1) of "its our land - illegally acquired we want to build a religious structure there " dimension - which would have been a greater source for concern!!!


It's standard PR procedure for any company to not reveal much during interviews and limit/spin any difficulties into something positive. No wonder N Sridhar's answers are largely vague and open to interpretation. The question was related to the BMC so obviously he replied in respect to that. Just because he didn't mention Wakf doesn't mean we can rule that out yet.


I don't think Marine Lines Project is attached in connection to the 2G scam.

Can anyone verify this?

Yup, its not.

The India tower land is owned by Neelkamal Realtors (subsidiary of DB) along with Balwa/Goenka.

The other companies listed - Eversmile and Conwood are both DB group subsidiaries. If the India tower was involved they would have listed Neelkamal as well.

As far as 2g goes, everything looks clear. The promoters are out and the property hasn't been attached. Balwa has traditionally been the fixer for all the DB projects. Since he just came out of jail, he's been lying low and hasn't greased BMC's palms..YET.

they are out on bail though. By no means a done deal.


Its still going to take quite some time to finish this project. (say 5-6 years?)


Plus India tower and the BMC is the least of Balwa's worries

http://business-standard.com/india/news/etisalat-sues-swan-promoters-for-fraud/465690/

6 years sounds right.

Goenka seems to be making his way out (https://www.google.com/url?url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/vinod-goenka-not-involved-in-obtaining-.../913552/&rct=j&sa=X&ei=fQpMT437MKnr0QH584iQDw&ved=0CG4Q-AsoADAJ&q=goenka&usg=AFQjCNF-NJXuE8MBoO--n6alQB_JRSK6ZQ) of the case. It appears that he no dealing with Etilsat. Balwa might get shaheed (like his first name) so let's see how the case progresses.

Let's please stick to only the tower now :)

6 years sounds right.

Goenka seems to be making his way out (https://www.google.com/url?url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/vinod-goenka-not-involved-in-obtaining-.../913552/&rct=j&sa=X&ei=fQpMT437MKnr0QH584iQDw&ved=0CG4Q-AsoADAJ&q=goenka&usg=AFQjCNF-NJXuE8MBoO--n6alQB_JRSK6ZQ) of the case. It appears that he no dealing with Etilsat. Balwa might get shaheed (like his first name) so let's see how the case progresses.


Lets put it this way if Balwa and Goenka lose the case of fraud against the emirates its game over for them.

Now i dont know what happens to their chunk of DB hospitality and all.



Even the BMC palm greasing, its not so easy any-more. Look what happened to Kripashankar singh. Politicians in Mumbai are not going to get involved any anything for a while.The sena in the BMC is not stupid to have their palm greased by Balwa or anybody connected to the 2g scam.


However, the lawyers of the BMC are dud. I think DB will win the case simply by getting a good private lawyer. Set the precedent laid down by Enron in the early 90s in the state.



Edit: appologies did not see your last line.This is the last on the issue from me.

No apologies, it's ok. I didn't mean to cut you off btw :)

Maybe I am wrong but as per the name of this project "DB TOWER"...the website http://www.dbrealty.co.in/ shows completely different pictures of this project ( and ofcr different decription). I feel like this project has been completely changed...but hey I am not dissapointed...i guess being an Indian I am just too used to of that.
Can someone tell me what f___ is going on with that. ICoz honestly I am really freaking out :/
Thanks in advance!

^^
no dude its another project in BKC

^Yes, we've gone over this multple times, that is DB Tower, a lowrise commercial building in BKC. This is India Tower, a 720m mix-use tower at Marine Lines, far away from BKC.

Damn...I don't see this project anywhere on their website. How is it that one of their most expensive and ambitius project of all is not even mentioned on the website???

Because they are building it through DB Hospitality group, and not DB Realty even though DB Realty bought a big share in DB Hospitality. And they don't have a website for DB Hospitality. This is one reason.

The other might be to avoid inviting trouble themselves, since whoever is related (for approval, etc) would all want a share in the pie since this is an ambitious project. That is why they are keeping up a low profile for this project. I mean look what is happening for Kingdom Tower, they are freaking celebrating with the architectural community because I'm guessing they have complete control.

On an another note, for the first time, India Tower has been added to CTBUH 2012 (http://www.ctbuh2012.com/)
Note: This is not a confirmation that India Tower has resumed construction..Yet.

http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/4259/supertalllist.jpg
at 2012-03-15

You can find this image in this PDF (http://www.ctbuh.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=4kwUkCup39w%3d&tabid=2567&language=en-US) in the Future Tallest section.

nice!

how is it that on the main page the same list list does not mention India Tower?
The list is basically pointing out the "predicted World's 20 Tallest in the year 2020 as of Dec 2011"....strange :S

Why is this on hold again?

Why is this on hold again?

:troll:

Why is this on hold again?

Was on hold for sometime. Cliff notes : The site still belongs to the builders, and the builders were " allegedly attached" to a scam at the Federal government level, but that seems to be lessening. The authorities have not seized this site. Earlier, it seemed like the project would be outright cancelled, now, its on hold until both the scam aftershocks fade and the market improves

Some positive news but I'll wait for ground confirmation before poppin the cork

DB group all set to sell Hilton for over Rs 400cr (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/DB-group-all-set-to-sell-Hilton-for-over-Rs-400cr/articleshow/12374514.cms)

MUMBAI: The Hilton Hotel near Sahar airport is on the verge of being sold for more than Rs 400 crore, a year after the five-star hotel was put on the block by its owner, Dynamix Balwas (DB) Hospitality. TOI has learnt that the 1.2- acre property, formerly known as Le Royal Meridian, is expected to be sold to a US-based Patel family with interests in the hotel business.

DB Group sources said the company plans to raise around Rs 900 crore through the sale of five hotels in Ahmedabad, Pune, Jaipur, Mundra and Mumbai. These include the 63-room Le Meridien Hotel in Ahmedabad, the upcoming Grand Hyatt in Pune, the 125-room under-construction Hyatt Palace in Mundra and a 40-room fort-turned-hotel in Mukundgarh near Jaipur.
...
..
The arrests affected the group's on-going realty projects in Mumbai when lenders stopped funding them. DB Realty's 11 residential projects in the city were stalled, but sources said a fresh infusion of funds recently will ensure that they are completed on time.

One of DB's most ambitious projects, the 125-storey luxury hotel, the iconic India Tower (Park Hyatt Hotel), got stop-work notice last May after the BMC asked the company to pay premium and development charges running into a few hundred crores for the various building concessions it had sought. The firm moved the Bombay high court, claiming it owed the BMC only Rs 20 crore. A DB official said work will recommence on this project in the next two to three months.

Woot Woot......freaking great news. Of course we should play this down until any physical confirmation takes place.

This made my day! But I will be cautious. Good info and new hope for this project!

Cheers IndiansUnite :cheers:

cheers again :cheers: ....made my day too.... so in next 2-3 mnths i hope this thread will be changed U/C....:)

Yes.... U/C is wht I wish 2 C next to this forum..:wink2:

Nice. what was the outcome of this claim?


The firm moved the Bombay high court, claiming it owed the BMC only Rs 20 crore. A DB official said work will recommence on this project in the next two to three months.


They can only resume work if the decision has gone in its favor - has that happened or do they expect an outcome of the court judgement in their favor in 2-3 months?

Yeah, you are right, we can't be certain if they got a favorable result from the court that they decided to resume OR they are EXPECTING to resume due to assumption that they will get a positive result.

YEP - there's a gap of information in that quote of DB Realty. IU bhai - I'd recommend not popping the cork until the Fat Lady really starts singing!

From the looks of it, they're either expecting a favorable outcome or will settle for a compromise, even if they have to shell out the demanded hafta in hundreds of crore rupees. To tackle the funds crunch, they're also raising money by selling off their other hotel properties.

Do keep in mind that this is DB's signature project, a project that they've been passionate about since inception. They won't just let this die 'cause of some inane premium that the BMC just cropped up.

Today's been good. Encouraging stuff there, IU.

Thanks alot iu for that info. This has lifted our spirits once again with a ray of hope to see our dearest baby rising......

Good news for all of us...congrats..

But i do think That any claims made by D.B reality nowadays is desperate attempt to resurrect their image..noting else...

And sorry for being so pessimistic ..

I sincerely hope that i am wrong..

Thanks alot iu for that info. This has lifted our spirits once again with a ray of hope to see our dearest baby rising......

:lol:

But I don't want to get my hopes up.

Well sorry for being negative...almost all uc projects in mumbai are facing danger ahead due to new rules imposed by these bloody BMC officials...so until everything is confirmed we cant say a word...hope bombay high court gives judgement in favour of DB.but if BMC has purchased the judges then nothing can be done rather taking the case to apex court which would give judgement after 5 to 6 years....hope all will go well

Nishu bhaiya strikes after a long time;)