Real estate developers home in on Daman
30 Nov 2015
SURAT: An ancient port having a mix of history and culture, the Union Territory of Daman with its churches, beaches and beach-side hotels is trying to break away from its weekend getaway and 'watering hole' image.
It was time when small-scale industries flourished in Daman. Entrepreneurs from bordering Gujarat and Maharashtra preferred to set up units in Daman to take advantage of the UT status. But no one thought of making a home there.
However, in the last three years, this picturesque port town has been able to record over 400 per cent growth in the realty sector. The realty prices are on the boil as industrialists and tourists from Surat and neighbouring Maharashtra have started pumping in huge investments in residential projects in the fast developing areas in Nani Daman.
For example, the price of a 100 square metre land in Nani Daman was Rs 1 lakh some four years ago, which has a price tag of Rs 4 lakh to Rs 5 lakh today.
Two years ago, an apartment near Nani Daman beach at Varkund or Devka Beach Road would cost anything between Rs 1,100 and Rs 1,200 per square feet. At present, the same apartment is available for Rs 1,800 to Rs 1,900 per square feet.
In the last two years, around 20-25 high-rise building projects have been developed by real estate developers, mainly from Surat and neighbouring Valsad district in Nani Daman. Most of these flats have been bought by people from Surat and Mumbai.
A hotelier in Nani Daman Vijay Tandel said, "In Mumbai and Surat, the realty prices have skyrocketed. Thus, there are many who are shifting their investments in Daman's realty. Every year, tourist bookings in the hotels are going down in Daman hotel as now they have their own furnished flats and bungalows."
Desmond Christian, owner of DMC Constructions Private Limited, a Surat-based realty firm, which has lined up four high-rise residential apartment projects in Nani Daman, told TOI, "The boom in Daman's real estate market is visible since the last three years after Surtis started buying weekend homes. Now, we have a mix of investors from Surat and Mumbai."
Christian is in the process of laying the foundation stone for his fifth project near the new bridge connecting Nani Daman and Moti Daman.
Another real estate developer from Surat Lavkesh Patel is developing a row house project at Varkund in Nani Daman. He said, "There is a dual benefit for investors here. They can enjoy with their families and friends during the holidays and get a permanent resident status too in the Union territory."