Save Tiger; Save Ourselves!

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“Wildlife is and should be useless in the same way art, music, poetry and even sports are useless. They are useless in the sense that they do nothing more than raise our spirits, make us laugh or cry, frighten, disturb and delight us. They connect us not just to what’s weird, different, other, but to a world where we humans do not matter nearly as much as we like to think. And that should be enough.” … Richard Conniff.

Richard Conniff is an American non-fiction writer, specializing in human and animal behavior. And actually going by the way he has put importance of wild life he should have been awarded Pune’s citizenship, yes I am referring to the sarcasticisum in his words! But then why Punekar when it’s wild life conservation & the way it’s being handled here in our country or State any sane person will lose his cool though sane person is a rare or endangered species in itself in today’s time! No, I am not blaming so called system or forest dept or poachers or govt or politicians or builders (read land developers) or the industries for the threats tigers (read wild life) is facing! I am not blaming anybody because everybody is at blame on this front, so I am just putting forward facts. In this month of April & May when central elections got declared naturally death of a sub adult tigress by hunter’s trap in some forest got forgotten fast. But do mind, this was not some forest; this happened at Tadoba  Tiger Park which is a heaven for tigers (read wild life) & that too in the core area near second entry gate called as Khatoda gate! And just before that some assistant Conservator of forest’s clip got viral, saying “high time we need to curtail or control tiger population”! This was like petrol on fire as on one side Save Tiger is key word for wild life conservation & a senior forest officers itself saying reduce tiger numbers & then a tigress gets killed within a Tiger Park which is supposedly safest place for the tigers! Well, all along when I am saying tiger, please note that its symbolic presentation of wild life as tiger is at the apex of wild life chain & what I meant is, every single wild life species i.e. right from sloth bear to pangolin to yellow footed pigeon, every specie’s life is at threat is what we are referring to! Many (read most) people calling themselves wild lifers or nature conservationists raised hail on social media doubting integrity of forest dept itself about wild life conservation & conclusion was death of a tigress by hunters or poachers right within the Tadoba park is outcome of attitude of forest personnel! Well, what else can be expected as with boon of social media & digital photography any guy who can click some snaps of forests (read tigers) & can afford to go the national parks, considers himself authority on wild life & thinks he or she is the only savior of wild life!

Indeed some who has seen Tadoba & alike forests are concerned & one of my friends asked me what has happened actually with the said tigress & can I write about it, so the people will know the fats! Well, I am no authority on wild life & there are many far better people are in the field but I am lucky enough to visit many forests & got opportunity to know views personnel, associated with wild life from different perspective. Some as they are paid for it ( read as forest dept), some look at it as their survival i.e. guides, gypsy drivers, some because of genuine interest, some as profession i.e. wild life tour operators, some passionate about wild life, some who lives around forests i.e. locals & the list goes on! And all these insights have helped me to know the wild life from multi dimensional perspective, which I will be sharing! As forest or wild life is not just animals, birds, insects & trees but in includes people also who are in & around & these people also makes part of wild life. And it’s this co existence of people (read humans) & all other species is the main cause of problems in wild life conservation. 

We all need forest but in our convenient way & these ways can differ from person to person. For e.g. forest dept needs forest as their job is to protect forests. Guides needs forests & tiger as tourist come to the forest to see the tigers. Tour operators needs forest & tigers to make money via making tourists visit these forests. The so called  Wild Lifers needs forests so they can click snaps of tigers & post on FB/Insta & get likes for the posts & the list is on & do mind no necessary all these people do need the forest & the tiger but they may not be liking it! But then there are people who live in & around forests but they may not like tiger or wild animals! Finally there are people who like forests & tigers as they can make money by killing it! Though no need to tell that they are fools as if you keep killing tigers for making money then the source will dry fast as what you will do when you have killed all the tigers? But then in today’s world, number of fools is far more than the tiger’s count & that’s our main problem! Rather few of them who are living in & around forest may be even disliking tigers as well wild animals & reasons may be many for their disliking towards wild animals. For e.g. a family living in village Kolsa or Palasgaon, well these are name of villages which are right within Tadoba Park which has refused to shift from the park, for their own reason! These people has their cattle & they do farming as that’s their source of earning & no need to say they are always exposed to threat of attack from wild animals like tiger & leopard & their crops can get destructed by the animals like deer & wild boar! And this is enough reason for not liking wild animals, had I been living there, I also would not have liked wild animals!

And on the top of it see the way the forest dept which is supposed to protect wild animals is equipped with! Imagine you are a forest guard & you haven’t given any life saving weapon like gun & you have been asked to patrol the area of some 20 sq km in the dense forest with just a walkie talkie. And threat is not from the wild animals but more from the humans who dislike these wild animals & are on mission of killing these wild animals, so how you are supposed to fight with them? In the first place how & why the human settlements (read villages) are allowed for any reason within the reserved forests. The package for shifting these locals is damn good considering their income yet just to squeeze more money or they are getting well paid by the poachers (just a chance) they refuse to shift from reserved forests & become a major nuisance for the wild life as well for the forest dept. The govt (read apart from forest dept) must support forest dept to overcome this hurdle because these local people, most of the times becomes shield of the poachers is fact! At the same time till we can’t shift them the forest dept, NGO’s as well every that person who claims to be a wild life love should unite to make the locals love the wild life as the thing which you love, you end up caring for it & respecting it! So, till all concerned people related to the wild life doesn’t start loving wild life, alone forest dept will never be able to save tigers or other species from getting killed, is a fact!

And for that we need to come up with Love Wild Life campaign all across the State as well country, involving even the cities as to make people love wild life one needs to take care of their day to day demands & it does need money as well infrastructure. And govt always moves only after public pressure which must be created from every segment of the society about wild life conservation! 

Frankly the most important aspect we are overlooking or ignoring is our ever growing population & its greed which is the biggest threat to wild life. As the 120 crore & increasing population of this country may be a boon for so called development or trade of the country but this 120 crore population need land & lots of it for its daily needs which includes homes, industries, mines, roads, schools, airports, railway lines & what not! And only land easily available if under forest which is home of wild animals is the easiest target as no wild animal ever demands for any compensation to shift from its home neither it goes to any court against humans nor it can protest & post its anguish on social media. All these wild animals can do is try to fit itself in whatever little piece of forest it gets or surrender to human encroachment (read die)! And humans are happy as they get land for their needs without paying any compensation but do mind nature does compensate in its own way & that day nobody will be left to compensate to use for the crimes we have committed by not compensating to wild life!

Death of a tigress inside Tadoba is being hailed by the society because today a tigress got dead in so called tiger park but what about hundreds of animals including tigers, elephants, leopards, jackals, snakes, birds & fish too, which are getting killed by we all (read humans) because of our encroachment on their homes by all means, who is shouting about it? Indeed this doesn’t justify the death of the tigress but when we point one finger towards some forest dept then rest four fingers are pointed towards us only, mind it!

Sanjay Deshpande 

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about real estate in Pune at U-Tube link below..

https://youtu.be/g3lx1Nq7pBs

Please do visit my blogs to know about our philosophy at Sanjeevani ! (Click the links below)

http://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2018/08/pune-city-no-1.html

http://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.in/

Social Side of Sanjeevani ! (Click link below)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/sets/72157627904681345/

For any of your complaints about city, log in at link below

www.punecorporation.org

Take your issues to Hon PM at link below..

https://secure.mygov.in/#

Think Green, Think Life

www.sanjeevanideve.com

A Society Named Valencia !

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“A city is not gauged by its length and width, but by the broadness of its vision and the height of its dreams”… Herb Caen.

Herb Caen was a San Francisco journalist whose daily column of local goings-on and insider gossip, social and political happenings, painful puns and offbeat anecdotes—"a continuous love letter to San Francisco"—appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle for almost sixty years & in the process has become one of the best documents on a city! Well, why I get fascinated by this quote is I do get equally fascinated with the cities & people & their vision (when I am not in forests) & before I start my sharing about one such city I visited in Spain trip, let me ask you something about our Pune city. If I say that imagine if we divert entire Mula-Mutha rivers (well, on record they are still rivers) like a ring road (ring river) from outside of the city & use that gorge (river bed or basin) of the rivers to develop as biodiversity park, jogging tracks, water bodies, public areas as well build Science Park like structures in the space; what will be your reaction? Most people will say I am mad, my NGO friends will say I showed my true colors as a builder as this is some new idea of utilizing the land under the river for buildings, media will hail it as threat to city, die hard Punekar’s will say its deleting the very identity of Pune & the list of accusations will go one but I am hundred percent sure not a single Punekar will back up my thought or will think this is ever possible! And the reason is simple because we don’t believe in dreams as we don’t has vision to see drams & then in past many such dreams (crazy the dreams may be) has been shown to us & what happened to those dreams we all have witnessed. In first place, any such dream is whim of some single person or its keeping in mind some hidden interest, so the failure is written on wall because the very purpose or aim is wrong while dreaming such dreams, may it be BRTS (well though I have shared it thousand times still its Bus Rapid Transport System) or Mono rail or HCMTR, oh yes there has been river transport named dream too; all these never became reality because it’s not just dream but you need vision to make realty  the dream what you have seen & exactly this vision is what we lack! 

Now let me tell you there is a city named Valencia in Spain which I knew nothing about except it is a historic city & a tourist place! And thanks to my forester friends who made me go there & the moment I entered in the service apartment located right in city center I was in love with Valencia! The name sounds familiar, a bit Italic  but its very Spanish & I have visited enough cities in world but after Singapore (and recent Dubai) this is the city which made me feel I should settle here (with due respect to Kanha or Corbet)! I think the best thing a city can make you is fall in love with her (just like a woman) & like in the Movie Hotel Transylvania where the Count Dracula believes in ‘the Zing” i.e. falling in love at first sight; same thing happens with places & people! Well, each of us has his or her own The Zing for places but only the lucky ones meets their Zing & I am lucky on that front with Valencia! Now you must be real curious as there are far better & scenic cities in Europe is what friends has told me but then each of us comes to know what he or she loves only when you come across that love & it has to be felt, not explained of described! One has to just feel when in that city as it’s here life would be what you wanted to be! First thing I did is threw my bags in my room & hit the road to feel the crowd & the city streets! What caught my eyes is Gothic architecture faced buildings, mostly of similar height, some seven or eight storied, lined along the roads. Cool breeze with crisp blue sky above & the cafes as well bars running all along the roads with small narrow lanes connecting main streets, shops with freshest of colored display of goods & people of all ages, gender, walking, sipping wine or coffee, laughing & the whole atmosphere was like a living dream come true! Well, now about diverting the river, in Valencia they have done it; for years the river was flowing right through the city like most cities in Europe. But then Spain is a country with mountains & vast lands with lots of rains & flooding was a big problem so the city council decided to divert the entire stretch of river passing through the city & they did it! And with the huge land available which was earlier river bed, without touching the contours of this land they have converted it in a biodiversity park (read as garden) which actually is forest or say eco system in itself. And along with forest there is a football ground & every possible use as public place. On the top of it there is Science Park & Institute of Oceanography built in it which is marvel of architecture & a center of tourist attraction as well! I walking all along this river park & seen by my own eyes & then believed dreams can be a reality, Valencia has done it! Because of time constraints I couldn’t see the Science Park from inside but even the outside & facades itself are enough to give the idea what lays inside!

Actually this single thing is enough to make Valencia unique on front of Urban Planning & City Development but it’s just one of the many aspects the city offers to its citizens. Valencia has got few of the oldest buildings in Europe which has been not only conserved but has been converted in to museums; one such is ceramic museum in a castle. Valencia has been ruled by many kings & kingdoms, even Arabs ruled it for hundreds of years & one good thing happened is every dynasty has given its culture to the city & today the city stands with blend of heritage & modern architecture! While walking through the by-lanes of the city I was comparing it with our Smart City Pune which has been tied up between a puzzle whether to conserve old charm or go one behind the development under the names of Malls & IT Parks & we have lost both! As in Valencia what I realized is focus is neither the heritage nor the development but its people around which entire planning resolves. What's most significant about Valencia is, the public places they have created everywhere by which people come together & share what they have (good things I meant)! As a society is build not with structures but by the sharing people does among them & for that we need to give them space to come together! In Valencia there is space for art, culture, performance, sports, leisure & through these spaces they have conserved heritage along with development!

Even in the old city center I was moving through lanes barely 20 ft wide & in the cluster of buildings & churches there are chowks (squares) kept open & where people does all sorts of leisure activities like painting, music groups & yes drink wine, which seems to be a national program of entire Spain! The Old Central Market has redone & now is a tourist’s attraction for shopping local goods which mostly are local agro products like jam, syrups, cookies, chocolates, sweets, clothes & souvenirs! Again images of our Phule Mandai flashed in my mind & the state that beautiful heritage building is in! Here one thing I observed about the souvenirs & that is their quality & innovation put in it; unlike just caps, tee shirts & key-chains type item, here at display was everything which you can use as household or fashion & branded with Valencia! Right from wine openers to lighters, they have tried their innovation beyond our imagination while making souvenirs & this is very important aspect for a country which is not wealthy like its neighbors as this helps the residents to make real good money! And while doing this they have taken care that neither the residents nor the tourists has to face traffic hustles. Immaculate, is the word when I saw the traffic management & parking systems here & no traffic police I saw in entire stay, yet people were following every traffic rule. The Central Cathedral (sorry as by me name isn’t much important, its St. something) which is tourists attraction, the entire front plaza now rests on a three storied underground parking with not a single vehicle allowed on surface except the city buses which are moving in out just to pick up or drop the tourists! And all the excavation as well construction has been done right adjoin to the main Cathedral with no fuss over damaging to heritage structure like cry! I remember law suits here for just making under pass or Metro near our so called heritage structures (Agakhan Palace or Pataleshwar temple are recent examples) & the condition these structures are actually in! All other times we neglect our heritage& when something like road or Metro starts around them, which in actual is to facilitate citizen’s life only, then we remember these structures are heritage too & start raising objections! I won’t say don’t take care of our heritage structures, rather I say understand what conservation (read caring) our heritage means in first place & then act! Cities like Valencia have understood what conservation of heritage is & balance it with development. Everywhere information boards are displayed in three languages i.e. Spanish, English & German, about the place, its history & what it was when its build initially, how it got damaged in the mean time & how its restored in today’s form! And then there are banners everywhere appealing to the tourists about uploading the snaps they have taken on FB page of Valencia City Council. And the best snaps will be used on the souvenirs, now tell me what better way there can be to make tourists as part of your promotion of the city!

On last day we took tour of the city via hop in-hop off bus as mostly I wanted to see the new city as well. And here while developing the new city two major aspects has been looked after, one is face of the buildings, they are in tune of Gothic architecture & lots of green spaces along with public areas with fountains! It’s amazing to see what a small fountain can make the difference to the public area; it becomes center of activities as people lazying around the water bodies is a wonderful scene to feel! And special spaces has been created for art in the form of sculptures all around, showing to visitors that the backbone of city is art! There has been a park developed from recycled waste of all sorts & its latest tourist attraction, no wonder!

One more thing, in old city on Sunday morning there is a flea market where anybody can sale anything, right from home made wines to used clothes & on Sunday, till late noon entire old city roads are closed for vehicles so people can enjoy flea market! On last day evening, sitting on a road side café in & sipping coffee in old city of Valencia, I was just observing the people, it was weekend eve & I always used to think about what differentiates a society from just a bunch of people staying together! Well, here in Valencia I got the answer, it’s not just the people but the people with a vision & a will to make that vision a reality, is what differentiates a society from bunch of people staying together! After coming back to our Smart Pune while I was writing down my this sharing I came across two news in news papers, one was about a one & half kilometer length of road has been made as heritage walk with closing down that stretch for vehicles in Amritsar, Punjab & it has become a great success! And second news was about certain road widening in Sadashiv Peth area of Pune , a decision which has been as usual being debated as been implemented for some builders & going to be a threat for many heritage structures, truth only God knows; now is it needed that I comment, why we are the way we are today as a city! 

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Sanjay Deshpande 

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about real estate in Pune at U-Tube link below..

https://youtu.be/g3lx1Nq7pBs

Please do visit my blogs to know about our philosophy at Sanjeevani ! (Click the links below)

http://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2018/08/pune-city-no-1.html

http://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.in/

Social Side of Sanjeevani ! (Click link below)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/sets/72157627904681345/

For any of your complaints about city, log in at link below

www.punecorporation.org

Take your issues to Hon PM at link below..

https://secure.mygov.in/#

Think Green, Think Life

www.sanjeevanideve.com

Understanding Redevelopment!

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“None of us knows what might happen even the next minute, yet still we go forward. Because we trust. Because we have Faith.” … Paulo Coelho.

The Noble prize winning writer actually needs no special introduction though many a doesn’t like much Paulo & thinks he is over rated writer yet his philosophy towards life can’t be neglected & I am admirer of him for sure! And recently when I have been called to speak at an event regarding redevelopment issues in Pune its Paulo’s above quote & used in my sharing with the audience. Well, first the key question what is redevelopment & what’s so significant about it as on that day nearly some 1500 plus people were present in the auditorium & at one stage people were sitting on stage & this does shows the grave concerns common man has about the topic & as usual "Mai Baap" Govt either can’t see this or prefers to turn a blind eye at it! So, redevelopment is demolishing the existing development (read building/structure) & building a new structure at the same place! Well, pretty simple to read isn’t it but mostly the simplest of the things on face are most complicated actually & when any such things are related to real estate in our beloved city Pune then take it granted & redevelopment too is not exception to this rule!

So, in nutshell redevelopment when used or referred in context of real estate then it’s demolishing the existing building where one or multiple owners are residing & then rebuilding a new building on the very land accommodating existing owners as well the new ones. Now, one will ask why in first place demolish the existing building? Well, there are many reasons for that & it’s the reason for demolishing existing building (read redevelopment) is the key to most of the problems or say issues involved in the process! For that lets see why the seminar has been called regarding redevelopment where people from hundreds of societies were present with equal numbers of questions (read problems). The organizers have sent me in advance few of the key issues raised by would be audience; just to get the seriousness of the subject I am mentioning some of them…

1.    For taking redevelopment of a society ahead how many resident’s permission (willingness) is must?

2.  ULC act has been abolished but still there are hurdles for redevelopment of societies build under ULC act provision, any light on it?

3.  If we enter in agreement of redevelopment with a builder, work started & what he left half way & ran away abandoning the project?

4.  Is it a must to have name of society on property card?

5.  How much more FSI for Metro route affected societies is there, what’s exact scene on that front?

6.  In existing society if balcony or terrace has been enclosed how this space will be considered while redevelopment?

7.  Is there any criterion about how much years’ minimum the society must be, for redevelopment?

8.  Where FSI is not balance, redevelopment is possible?

9.  In how many years the concerned developer must complete the project once redevelopment agreement is entered in?

10. Which documents are required for redevelopment?

    11. If the developer is finalized by the society members for redevelopment but the plans he has made are not accepted by few of the existing members, then what to do?

Well, above is tip of iceberg as there were many more & now you will realize the chaos among the common people (read society members) regarding their redevelopment & trust me, in many cases even the builders as well professionals are also clueless as above are very basic questions; there are more questions like GST on the transaction as well applicability of RERA etc! As I mentioned there were nearly thousand plus people in the hall & there were many developers also as apart from above sample questions even the developers also has questions for the experts! To start with take the most important issue i.e. TOD or Metro FSI (popularly known as 4 FSI); except the various news published in the new papers that too sources unknown, nobody is sure how much this Metro FSI will be given & where, to whom & at what rate. What will be utilization criteria, what charges one has to pay (read developer) to avail this FSI, then what will be parking norms as that’s another key question. And then will the TDR allowed on such plots if the developer has already got TDR or even if TDR is available at cheaper rate then why the society members or the developer has to still go for high rate Metro FSI in such case? See, just one aspect that is Metro FSI & there are hundreds of questions which even the PMC officers are unable to answer except telling “we have sent a proposal to govt (well, in govt too there are many govts’) & awaiting the reply” (read orders) was the answer! Oh yes there is one more confusion & its about giving TDR on 6 m wide road abutting buildings as no one knows what’s policy actually for this! If this is situation with the authorities like PMC who are supposed to have planning control of the city, how one can expect poor society members & poorer developers (poorer on the front of having any say in policy making) can answer any such question. And then there are more complicated issues like societies which has been developed under ULC act (when the act was in effect) but today when ULC act has been abolished yet the permissions are required from ULC (governed by UD as well Revenue dept) for redeveloping such societies & needless to say the game of pointing fingers to each other is on & no policy is clear to give any guide-lines for redevelopment future of such ULC affected societies. Well, a lay man like me will ask when you have build a structure on a plot may it be a surplus land then but today when people are legitimate owners of such homes & the ULC act itself is gone, why you need to treat these buildings separately! Answer is simple, here in this country nothing comes free, indeed there should not be free meals but one can’t expect to show claim on somebody else’s hard earned meal, right? Govt is supposedly coming up to allow ULC affected societies’ redevelopment by paying some 5% premium in tune with ready reckoner charges is the news but then here distance (read time) between a news & reality can be infinite, so till then all I can answer is wait!

Along with me there were numbers of experts, senior personalities from the field on dais, especially legal as well co-operative society’s apex body members & architects along with PMC officials! One major question which haunts most of the redevelopment pursuing societies is, how many members permission is essential for redevelopment? As per the law even 51% members permission is fine (read essential or legal) but then does this country goes by sheer law & in time, is the question I asked? Not just as a builder but even as a common man how you are going to vacate even if a single flat holder refuse to join redevelopment? Do mind we are in a country where we can’t vacate an illegal buildings residents & the legal battle goes on for years & here we are talking of vacating a legal resident by pulling him out of his legal home via legal battle; all the best, I can say! My answer was legally it may be 51% but ideally unless 100% members agrees to redevelopment it’s not wise to go for it & at least as a builder I won’t touch such proposal is a fact! Same is with the issue of some members not agreeing for the plans as unless all the members agrees on some plan, it’s not a bungalow we are speaking about where everyone can have his ideal plan, somewhere we all need to come on one common platform as then only redevelopment is possible! Then comes the question of members with areas (read spaces in possession) like enclosed balcony or top terrace or ground  level gardens (which are actually side or rear margins), & how they can be compensated for such areas in redevelopment? Again this is something a builder has no answer actually because if you are possessing illegal goods (in plain words “chori ka maal”) then just because you possess them doesn’t makes it legal & you are not going to get benefitted for it, is moral answer. But again this country doesn’t run anymore on morals & values, is a fact! So it’s up to the developer & other members of the society, how much they can shell from their share for such spaces as do mind no developer will be insane enough (well, actually there are many) who will be giving even one rupee from his pocket as for the developer it’s a combine deal after all. So whatever he will be offering to such members will eventually be reduced from the areas of all the other flat holders is a fact & nothing wrong in it, after all its for greater good or such members with illegal possession of terraces or garden won’t join redevelopment is a fact!

Then comes the million dollar question, what if the developers runs away half way, what status of the members (existing) in such case & what’s fate of such redevelopment project? Interesting, as there are many such projects around & answer can vary case by case as every failure has its own story. Though one common cause behind it is greed; it’s by both ends developers & even by the society members too! As do mind redevelopment is possible only in the areas where rates are decent (read nearly above Rs 10,000 & above per sft). Obviously the flats here are in demand & if the offer has been properly worked out & the money collected from the new flat bookings has been used only for the said project then no such project can ever goes in loss! And here is where greed factor comes in as I have specifically mentioned two things, one is has the offer been properly worked out, means the society members must not be too greedy to get the additional area such that whatever has been left for the developer should be enough for him to make some money by selling it & build the project. If it’s not so then no wonder he will ran out of money & the project will be abandoned. And another one is greed of the developer that he should not take out money & use it for some other purpose than to build the said project! So two things one must take in account make a viability report from some professional agency & demand the additional area fairly & second is join hands with a non greedy builder with a track record! Speak with his completed buildings project’s residents as well study keenly his balance sheet! Also ask for bank guaranty of 50% of construction cost or take collateral security of his that much amount in the form of clear title another property, preferably flats or shops! And yes “DO NOT SHIFT FROM YOUR HOUSE UNLESS YOU HAVE A COMPLETE FULL SANCTION PLAN IN HAND INCLUDING LOADING OF TDR/PAID FSI ETC”, is the single advise I shared with the audience. As maximum problems arises in the stalled projects because the members shifted from their homes without confirming that the entire plan has been sanctioned & then because change in rulers, policies regarding TDR loading to stop works because of any sudden change in DC rules (no construction near nallahs or near hill tops types) things happens here. As well alignments of adjoining roads gets changed overnight & this all may affect the further sanctions of the project so it’s best to get all the plans sanctioned & then only shift from the existing building & allow the developer to demolish the same!  And best way is make the builder part of your society team, as any redevelopment is not just society member’s or the builder’s type thing, it’s a joint venture actually & it will be successful only if both parties work as one team, trusting each other in true sense!

And then about the title of the society; do mind, even redevelopment it may be yet the society needs to be legal owner of the property & it’s not just because you are living there but the documents like property card, index-2 as well conveyance deed etc must say that you are owner or else no sane developer will touch the proposal. And it’s always wisdom to appoint professional person to verify all such details. But then most society people are always short sighted (short pocketed too) when it comes to spending on ground work things & leaves that to the developer who obviously will do it on his benefit only! 

Looking at all these questions & confusion, I feel it’s high time the local civic body must start a cell to guide people seeking redevelopment. As well even associations like CREDAI along with Media can take on this initiative!  Frankly every redevelopment is unique in its place & no thumb rule can be applied to it. Most important thing which nobody asked is what about the entire plan as well building’s maintenance type things, post possession. Because the more additional space the developer will be offering means he will bring in more numbers of flats as then only he can offer more space but your land is same, mind it! Today most of the redevelopment societies members are typical middle class elderly person & per month maintenance of such buildings is very less i.e. Rs 500 to Rs 1000 per month per unit maximum! But with all new construction, right from property tax to annual maintenance for things like lifts & generator & mechanized parking, the monthly maintenance can go to Rs 5000 & above. The new entrant can easily afford it as he is coming by paying crores of rupees but what about existing people? Has anybody ever thought about it? Same is about the open space & greenery around the buildings as you are redeveloping the building but land is not increasing in size. In many cases I have seen beautiful big grown trees were present in existing societies which were cut under the name of redevelopment but no provision is there for new trees & how much time it will take to make them grow again even if we plant the trees today! I just want to ask one question to every society member seeking redevelopment, why do you want redevelopment, just because you are getting few sq ft extra at free of cost or you want a better life than what you have right now! And then you all will be getting a new home along with new luxuries of the life with redevelopment of your home but who will be doing redevelopment of that big neem or jamun tree which has been growing along with you in that old society of yours & what about that tree’s resident like sparrows & parrots & squirrels, which doesn’t have a property card on their name, ask this to yourself & then only go ahead as that will be true redevelopment of the society & not just of the concrete structure, you call your home!

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Sanjay Deshpande 

Sanjeevani Dev.

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