Railway Land Development Authority (RLDA), a statutory authority under the Ministry of Railways, is looking to raise close to Rs 5,521 crore ($1.02 billion) in the next 2-3 years through land leasing, according to sources privy to the development.
“We are finalising the model for undertaking these projects. The documents are in the finalisation stage and awaiting approval from the ministry,” a senior railway official told VCCircle on the sidelines of the FICC Real Estate Summit held in Mumbai.
RLDA has been looking to raise money through commercial exploitation of its land parcels in the vicinity of railway stations and also through upgradation of railway terminuses.
“Over the past few years, we have raised close to Rs 2,000 crore, out of which Rs 450 crore has come to the RLDA. We plan to raise the next round in the next 2-3 years,” the official added.
In the first phase of auctioning, RLDA has finalised five parcels including those in Chandigarh, Brijwasi and Anand Vihar in Delhi, and Shivaji Nagar in Pune. It has decided to offload a total of 52 sites in the first phase, comprising 1,500 hectares of land parcel across the country.
RLDA has land assets in Bangalore, Chennai, Vishakhapatnam and Delhi, as well as in Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal (Siliguri) and other regions. The authority is now looking to monetise its assets through standalone commercial sites and multifunctional complexes.
In 2010, Delhi-based Parsvnath Developers Ltd had outbid Mumbai-based Indiabulls Real Estate and acquired a 38 acre land parcel in Delhi for Rs 1,651 crore.
RLDA’s prized land asset in Bandra is spread across 4.5 hectares, but it is now mired in litigation. This land parcel was expected to fetch close to Rs 3,000 crore by way of an 80-year lease. In 2009, DLF Ltd was the sole bidder for the plot after the base price was reduced to Rs 668 per sq. mt., but the deal did not materialise.
International property consultants Knight Frank India and Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj are advising the railway authority for commercial sales in various zones of the country.
(Edited by Sanghamitra Mandal)
