THE REAL ESTATE MONITOR-4 .... Amrapali Dream Valley, another Antariksh!

Ramesh Kumar from Greater Noida

Don't know about you, but for me, the very mention of Amrapali brings back the most successful ex-Indian Cricket Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni from Jharkhand. Stop wondering what this Ranchi cricket sensation has got to do with real estate. He was the Brand Ambassador for the looter-builder Amrapali group. 

Just not Dhoni, I detest every single celebrity endorser: right from the mega Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan promoting everything under the sun; Shah Rukh Khan promoting Hyundai for long, and now he joins Ajay Devgun to promote some mouth freshener of late. Honestly, none of these celebrities use any of these products they promote. These products are low-profile items from their filthy rich perspective where they belong. We, the general public, are suckers. And gullible. Sad, but unadulterated, unvarnished truth.

Forget and ignore these con-personalities. Let's return to the realm of real estate. Amrapali Dream Valley (ADV) is in my neighborhood. Less than 500 meters from my housing complex in Tech Zone 4, Greater Noida. Himalaya Pride complex separates mine. So ADV is my neighbor. I cross the villa complex still under construction for more than a decade - like Antariksh - daily during my morning walks and sensed no activity for the past three years when I had moved into this sector. 

Today (23 July 2021), out of curiosity, I drove into the long drive-in with Rambo, my pet, for a dekko of happenings at ADV parking yard. The presence of a few trucks loaded with electric cable ferried from Rajasthan kindled my interest. 

Barring a pair of uniformed security guards (male and female) at the gate, there was no activity around 10 in the morning. That is, no workforce is visible. I looked at the sky: it was dark with rain-bearing clouds. Will it rain or won't? 

Then I remembered that there were men and women at work in the new blocks the builder of Green Arch Savior was completed at a faster clip, notwithstanding the weather. A sizeable workforce lives within the new blocks coming up, which is nothing unusual. They cook, eat, sleep. Yes, they live in the flats that you and I or any prospective buyer will occupy one day! As far as the potential buyers of Green Arch Savior's new block are concerned, they should feel lucky that they have genuine work in progress.

If Green Arch Savior builder can manage the workforce, why not the NBCC-appointed turnkey contractor under the Supreme Court directions after the Amrapali promoters and directors packed off to jail for cheating and various other punishable offenses? Valid question. Indians by nature are lethargic. Chal ne do attitude. 

Early this week, I chased a tempo packed with construction workers in the early hours rushing to a nearby housing site coming up. So, some promoters and contractors take their work seriously. 

Even the Amrapali block opposite Ryan International School or next to Fusion near Cherry County Police Chowki appears like a beehive: more helmeted workers jostling around. Perhaps the contractor was more active and desirous of meeting his timeline committed to NBCC. Good sign. So there are good, bad, and indifferent contractors like good, bad, and indifferent promoters/builders.

Backing out of ADV, I approached the second gate. Villas or row houses were visible. Just one worker was busy plastering the exterior at the first-floor level. His plastering was unsuccessful with the cement-sand mix was falling off, making him uneasy. As a lady worker crossed inside the gate, I asked her how is the work. She responded with a smile. "Pahaar mil raha hai ki nahi?" I asked. Again a smile was her response.

Then I began chatting with the security guard at the gate. The young man from Western Uttar Pradesh, pursuing a degree via correspondence course did not shoo me away. He inquired about my bookings in ADV. I have no booking but I belong to the same army of cheated middle-class homebuyers who have been taken for a ride by unscrupulous promoters/builders. That way, we are the Victim Class! 

After the Supreme Court intervention, things have changed positively. But at a snail pace. It is necessary to speed up. NBCC should monitor regularly. Plus, potential buyers should visit the site regularly to track the progress. 

As I was exiting ADV, caught up with a friend who also belonged to the same Victim class. Not with ADV or Antariksh, but Supertech. He had booked a decade ago and waiting. "If only I had parked the invested money in a bank fixed deposit, it would have more than doubled!" he lamented. Amen! But very late realization.