Whitefield: Housing booms sans infrastructure

WHITEFIELD IS RED HOT
This suburb is edging out Indirangar and Koramangala as the top address. But infrastructure is still woefully short
The Times of India

IT’S no longer Indiranagar or Koramangala that are the city’s exclusive addresses. In fact, while these upmarket localities are struggling with their own civic issues, the once-quiet Whitefield is today’s hot spot. So much so that property prices are skyrocketing. And people are giving up their swish city apartments for some quiet suburban living .

PRETTY CHARMING?

According to real estate professional Rekha Hamilton, Whitefield’s charm lies its proximity to town. “It’s still affordable, though prices are rising daily. Rs 30-40 lakh gets you a good flat with a swimming pool and clubhouse — that’s difficult to find in the city. So people are lining up to invest.” A recent mega building project was sold out overnight — others are already commanding a premium of lakhs of rupees. “Gated properties with all the facilities on tap are in now, and Whitefield is full of them.” Whitefield has an exclusive tag, being the choice of top IT professionals and expats. “But the bubble could soon burst. It’s getting very congested. When prices boom, the bad comes in with the good,” she says.

Affordability is an attraction, admits businessman Sanjeev Mehera, who’s recently moved there from town, “You get more than you would in town for the same price. It’s appealing to live away from the hustle and bustle. Once you’re past Marathahalli, it’s greener and quieter,” he says. Commuting is a necessary part of suburban living, he points out, “If the roads weren’t so bad, it would be fine.”

RAGE ABOUT ROADS:

Banking professional Samit Ghosh built his Whitefield home in 1998. “Bangalore’s attraction was its Garden City tag, but that’s going fast,” he says, “Also, the biggest problems are the roads. There’s zero traffic management, and the two main bottlenecks — the railway overbridge and Marathahalli village — see daily traffic jams.

Travelling to town twice a day is a nightmare best avoided, especially in the evenings — what took 30 minutes takes 90 minutes today.”
Mehera finds it incredible that the same bottlenecks existed 10 years ago, without anything being done about them. “Surely, they could have made more roads by now. It’s very shortsighted of the city planners.”

BIG BUCKS:

Will Whitefield retain its upmarket, quiet charm in the face of such frenzied development? No, says marketing professional Natasha M. “Soon, Whitefield will be like Indiranagar.” She bought her Whitefield plot for Rs 200 a sq ft in 2002. “Just last week, I was offered Rs 1,300 a sq foot for it,” she says incredulously. But with the initial euphoria of moving to a green space wearing off, she admits, “They keep promising to improve infrastructure, but nothing happens.” Every inch of unused land is now built up. “People are constructing without giving any thought to available infrastructure,” says Ghosh.

WATER WOES:

Water shortage is an old, old issue which has not yet been resolved. “Most of us depend on borewell water,” says Ghosh, “They say they’ve laid pipelines, but there’s no supply. The water table is dropping.” Says Natasha, “You can’t build there without sinking borewells and making septic tanks first. There’s no access to Cauvery water.”

FEW FACILITIES:

Other facilities are coming up, but slowly. “Hospitals and upmarket international schools exist, but they aren’t low budget,” says Hamilton, “Soon, fancy stores, restaurants will follow.”
Multiplexes and restaurants are coming up, says Ghosh. “Koramangala isn’t too far away. There’s an excellent club too, which takes local members. Doctors, vets, are all accessible. Whitefield is becoming increasingly self-sufficient.” Says Mehera, who has teenagers, “My children feel the isolation more. There’s no access to top level entertainment yet.”

INFRASTRUCTURE MISSING:

“All over the world, infrastructure is put in place before layouts are planned. Here, it’s the reverse,” says Mehera, “I was in Delhi last week where huge planned development is happening on the outskirts, with six-laned highways. For a city like Bangalore not to plan its infrastructure is a bad sign. At this rate, Whitefield will end up a modern slum in 10 years —unplanned with fancy houses.”