Development Watch – Week #1 October ’22
Development News
India-California Collaboration on Zero-emission Vehicles
India is partnering with California for research and innovation in the field of zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) to facilitate development of EV industry in the country. California has an ambitious 100% ZEV mandate by 2035. As part of collaboration, the University of California, research institute Davis Institute of Transportation Studies has established a new India ZEV Research Centre. In addition to addressing policy, technology and investment strategies for a ZEV transition, it would identify opportunities for India to emerge as a strategic leader in global ZEV transition. India is also preparing to host the Clean Energy Ministerial and the G20 in 2023.
2% Stamp Duty rebate to go on till 2022
West Bengal government has provided 2% reduction in stamp duty and 10% reduction in circle rate in the year 2021. The state govt has further extended rebate till end of 2022. This would also help accelerate the sales in real estate. Since the stamp duty cut announcement, 57,136 residential properties have been registered in Kolkata Metropolitan Area (KMA).
Office space supply increased by ~50% in last 8 months
According to a report released by Colliers India, a real estate consultant, office space supply has risen by 49% during January – September period of 2022. This is across 6 cities on completion of many commercial projects to meet rising demand. The supply stood at 22 million sq ft last year while this year it was 32.8 million sq ft. Fresh supply rose in Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Pune, but declined in Bengaluru and Mumbai. Delhi-NCR witnessed a 133% growth to 6.3 million square feet. The gross leasing of office space also doubled to 40.6 million sq ft during January-September across 6 major cities on pent-up demand, mainly driven by technology and co-working firms. Gross absorption is also expected to go up, and it does not include lease renewals, pre-commitments and deals in LOI stage.
Govt-Amazon MoU for jobs to People with Disabilities
Department of Empowerment of People with Disabilities (DEPwD) has signed an agreement with Amazon India and Skill Council for People with Disabilities to jointly provide skill training and employment opportunities in e-commerce sector. MoU was signed in the presence of Social Justice and Emp Minister Virendra Kumar. The role of Amazon would be to work jointly with DEPwD and SCPwD on a structured skilling programme. This would enable inclusion and assimilation that can help in not just hiring people, but also nurture and create an equitable environment for their growth.
ONDC being open to Public on September 30
India’s mega ecommerce network aims to enable buyers and sellers to transact through a single platform. The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) mostly has food and grocery merchants at present. It will integrate domains such as fashion, lifestyle, beauty products and consumer durables by November 2022. The platform will begin its beta testing with public users in Bengaluru Urban on September 30. 20 more apps will also be launched by the DPIIT. As many as 20 organizations of national repute, such as SBI, HDFC Bank, have confirmed investments of Rs. 255 Crores in ONDC.
First freight aircraft inducted in Indigo
Indigo airlines announced the induction of its first freighter aircraft , which has been converted from a passenger place. Induction of A321 P2F (passenger to freighter) will help the airline offer cargo services on both domestic and international routes. The narrow-body freighter aircraft has 24 container positions and a payload capacity of 27 tonnes. The aircraft would serve markets between China in the east and Gulf in the west. It will also serve CIS countries to the north. The CarGo business brought in revenues when scheduled commercial flights were not operational during the pandemic.
8% Rural households receive water only once a week
According to a new government study, 8% of rural households receive water only once a week, while 74% receive water on all seven days. National study conducted by Ministry of Jal Shakti was released on October 2, Sunday. 80% households have reported that their daily requirements of water are being met by tap connection. For the study, a total of 13,299 villages were surveyed. Nationally, 59% households states that they receive piped water supply at least once a day with average duration of 3 hours.
Local Feedback
LocalFeedback.org aims to track and document actionable parameters that help improve urban and rural infrastructure. The founder, Susmita, has juggled diverse roles in real estate, project budgeting, valuation and execution on construction sites. Having traveled to more than 20 countries, she has worked across 4 regions in India. Her areas of interest include sustainable buildings, electric mobility and urban development. She visited top-ranking cities on livability indices and has presented published papers at international conferences.