Properties, Homes & more

In my last article, we observed how an economic fraud has been taking shape in SOHAM BUILDERS’ Thane project. The person, whom we can now call a CON-MAN, is none other than one of the most trusted aides of the builder - SOODESH MORE. Soodesh was enjoying trust not only from the builder, but also from many of the customers and staff. He usually was polite and always tried to settle the issues amicably. This quality of his has won him lot of trust from the buyers of residential properties.

I think a visit to the history behind all this story may be of help to my readers. It should be noted that the project under question - FAIRYTALE under Soham Gardens at Manpada Thane West - was under litigation for last 2-3 years. Soodesh was the middleman, interfacing between the builder and the angry, agitated, frustrated customers. He managed both so well that most of the customers actually put in trust and faith in Soodesh. He enjoyed a kind of blind faith! And this was exactly at the center of all this economic irregularity. Since he was blindly trusted, Soodesh managed to SELL THE SAME FLAT TO MULTIPLE BUYERS!

Find below the official communication from Soham Builders urging all its customers to avoid any type of dealing with Soodesh More.

Real Estate Leasing business of the Construction Division of Godrej has recently announced its grand foray into IT PARKS with the “Godrej IT Park - P2” As a part of its continuous effort to demonstrate care and respect for environmental preservation, the Godrej IT Park will be a LEED certified Green Commercial Building Project at Godrej and Boyce complex at Vikhroli. Godrej IT Park shall have more than 1.4 million sq. ft. of constructed space with approximately 1 Million sq. ft. of space on Leave & License. It consists of 2 Stilt Levels and 2 podium levels for Car Parking, Building Services and Utilities and 6 levels of Office Space.

“Godrej IT Park - P2″ is a warm shell, multi-tenanted building with exterior walls, landscaping and constructed parking lots. The building is fully enclosed with Electrical Systems and Power, HVAC, Plumbing and Fire fighting, Building Management System, Sewage Treatment plants and backup DG.

Salient Features

1. Godrej IT Park – P2 is located within the large lush green campus of Godrej and Boyce complex
   Provides flexibility and scalability across floors and blocks
2. Option of occupying multiple floors in a single wing or on the same floor
3. Neighbouring with existing large IT / ITES companies within the G&B complex
4. LEED pre-certified Gold rated Green Building with 41 points
5. Ample Car parking space
6. Landscaped Terrace garden

In a shocking revelation to Times of India, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) civic chief Swadhin Kshatriya told that not a single building with car decks on each floor has so far received the mandatory occupation certificate (OC) from the corporation. According to the records with BMC, most of “such” residential buildings were still in the construction stage! And as a matter of fact, most of these building are in prime locations across the metropolis.

In fact, BMC has already stopped sanctioning buildings with car decks, in order to prevent any possible misuse. The chief cracked the whip after a TOI expose on how builders who had got permissions to construct car parking decks on each floor were misusing the space by selling it as part of your apartment. That means, builders claim that they are providing private car decks and in the process grab additional FSI. For example, one of the prominent developer in the metropolis show to prospective buyers the living room in the area earmarked for the car park! This is clearly illegal and is a criminal act of deceiving innocent buyers…

The most blatant case is that of a new residential building in JVPD (one of the most prime areas of Mumbai) where the BMC’s building proposal department sanctioned 386 car slots for just 33 apartments. You can read more details about the story here.

In a bonanza for residents of a Khar housing society in Mumbai, a builder has been buying off their mid-sized flats, paying each family between Rs 4 crore and Rs 5.5 crore.

Mumbai-based Parinee Developers claims to have shelled out between Rs 4 crore to Rs 4.5 crore for a one-BHK flat and Rs 5 crore to Rs 5.5 crore for a two-and-a-half-BHK in the three-decade-old Bharatiya Bhavan Cooperative Housing Society, which is located at the corner of 17th Road in Khar (west). Parinee plans to demolish the buildings and set up a high-end residential tower.

However, there is a word of caution from real estate experts. They warn these huge amounts may send wrong signals in the redevelopment market, unnecessarily create hype and raise expectations of other housing societies in the area. However, Parinee said it is paying this astronomical price only because the society has utilised barely 40% of its floor space index (FSI).

The developer has already bought out 20 of the 37 flats in the society and said it is negotiating with the remaining flat owners. “We are finalising the purchase of the remaining 17 flats. Our acquisition cost for all the flats is around Rs 200 crore,’’ said a spokesperson for the developer. The society comprising six buildings, each ground plus two floors, is spread over an area of 5,570 square yards (over an acre) with ample open spaces and car parking. The one-BHKs have a carpet area of between 580 to 625 sq ft while the two BHKs are between 800 to 900 sq ft in size. The society has been on the block for the past four years. In 2007, TOI was the first to report that the society had invited sealed bids from various developers and that a Navi Mumbai-based builder, APA, had offered Rs 180 crore to the society.

A real estate expert has a word of advice for housing society residents, “Dont get greedy. Stick to only prominent developers who have delivered in the past.’’ The expert further said some unknown builders in the past had offered astronomical prices to housing societies, even outbidding the big guns in the industry. These shady builders are just fronts for some politicians who want to roll their black money in real estate. Housing societies should stay miles away from such builders, he warned.

Celebrate this festival of DIWALI by making a difference in the lives of some young girls who wish to pursue their dreams of being successful and confident like you and me. This is an effort by the team of “Mission Awareness” to help these girls in a way which will make them self independent…

Let me brief you about “Mission Awareness“. This is an organization run by enthusiastic youngsters who want to help the world by giving some time, talent and resources from their lives to make it a better place. They are involved in many activities to spread awareness about global warming, energy & water conservation, fuel conservation, etc. They now have come up with the bright idea of getting Diwali Diya’s made by these underprivileged girls.

The money that will be accumulated from the sale of these Diya’s will be used to conduct handicraft, acting & dancing and educational camps for the underprivileged children in primary schools across Mumbai & Greater Mumbai. With the help of very helpful teachers and friends, they have taught some underprivileged girls the art of painting Diya’s in a unique and different way. And see what they have made… A huge collection of beautiful & eco-friendly Diya’s that can make your Diwali even more colorful and bright. Find below the photographs of some of these awesome Diya’s alongwith their price.

LEAF Single: Rs 30 | Pair: Rs 55	PEACOCK Single: Rs 40 | Pair: Rs 70
FLOWER Single: Rs 20 | Pair: Rs 35	SWASTIC Single: Rs 20 | Pair: Rs 35
FLOWER-2 Single: Rs 20 | Pair: Rs 35	KAIREE Single: 20 | Pair: Rs 35
GANESHJI Single: 30 | Pair: Rs 55	SUN Single: Rs 70 | Pair: Rs 125
FLAT SHANKH Single: 20 | Pair: Rs 35	PLATE Single: Rs 40 | Pair: Rs 70
SHANKH Single: Rs 30 | Pair: Rs 55	TURTLE Single: Rs 40 | Pair: Rs 75
ROSE Single: Rs 20 | Pair: Rs 35	SUNFLOWER Single: Rs 20 | Pair: Rs 35

To order, please email to GUNCHA @ guncha.khare@gmail.com and mention your order & contact details. Guncha manages this Mission and will ensure that you get your Diya’s well in time in nicely wrapped package. I have bought 5 of them and believe me, they are simply superb. So go ahead and place your oder and help underprivileged a little bit in your own way…