Buddha146;s suburbia

New Town8212;a sprawling new township is fast becoming the centre of a resurgent Bengal. This is where the history of modern Kolkata is bei...

New Town8212;a sprawling new township is fast becoming the centre of a resurgent Bengal. This is where the history of modern Kolkata is being drafted, brick by brick.

According to present estimates, the township will be home to 7.5 lakh people and cater to another 2.5 lakh floating population. 8216;8216;There is every likelihood of the new town expanding from the present 3,075 hectare to at least 5,000 hectare,8217;8217; says P K Biswas, general manager of the West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd. WBHIDCO. He also corrects a misconception: 8216;8216;It is not Rajarhat Township as is described by many. It has officially been christened New Town, Kolkata. Rajarhat is only one block that has come into the development area.8217;8217;

A unique strategy marks the development concept of the New Town, explains Biswas. The government does not have funds to make investment at the new town. So, development of infrastructure is being done sectorally by raising money through sale of land primarily to the housing sector. The government also follows a strategy of cross subsidy in fixing the prices.

Land prices for the Low Income Group and Middle Income Group are heavily subsided and is compensated by the money raised from the High Income Group.

WBHIDCO till date has spent about Rs 700 crore for development of infrastructure. 8216;8216;To complete the entire project it would require anything between Rs 2,500-Rs 3,000 crore,8217;8217; estimate the planners. This investment is expected to churn a business volume of nothing less than Rs 50,000 crore.

SUBURBAN SPREAD

Spread over 3,000 hectare, New Town will be home to 7.5 lakh people

Estimated investment in infrastructure: Rs 2,500- Rs 3,000 crore

Investment till November 30, 2004: Rs 700 crore

INVESTMENTS have already started pouring in. Though much of the new town area still resembles a dust bowl with bulldozers, payloaders and land filling trucks dotting the landscape8212;developers, industrial powerhouses, joint venture firms have begun to look at it for launching their new initiatives. Some of the big names have already started showing their faith in this new urban giant, particularly in sectors like IT parks, mega housing, entertainment, medical and health facilities, clubs and parks.

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DLF, for instance, one of India8217;s leading commercial space providers have already acquired a 10 acre plot and proposes to invest Rs 300 crore to set up the DLF IT Park in the New Town. It is being billed as the largest integrated IT hub of eastern India that will provide world class Intelligent Workspace for ITes and BPOs.

Dr Vancheshwar of the DLF captures the entrepreneurial spirit: 8216;8216;Kolkata is emerging as an attractive investment destination, particularly in retail and IT sectors. Earlier, we used to be sceptical. But the sentiments and mindset are fast changing. The New Town with its huge land bank is sure to catch up with Gurgaon very fast.8217;8217;

UNITECH is the other builder to have acquired nearly 50 acre in the New Town. It will also have IT centre, and housing projects with foreign collaborations. Bengal-Peerless, Bengal-Ambuja are other undertakers of land who are fast coming up with their projects. And the latest to join the fray is WIPRO which was promised a 50 acre plot of land by the state chief minister himself. More are sure to flock. 8216;8216;The demand for land in the New Township is rising almost every day,8217;8217; says state government officials. Even as the New Town takes off, plans are afoot to link it with the underground railway.

For the 300 year old city of Kolkata, exhausted with congestion, an overburdened infrastructure and increasing pollution, New Town has come as a Godsend.