Delhi set to go higher, taller

After mid-rise structures with 12-15 floors that came up in east and west Delhi in the early 90s, the city is now set to get skyscrapers a la Mumbai.

After mid-rise structures with 12-15 floors that came up in east and west Delhi in the early 90s, the city is now set to get skyscrapers a la Mumbai.

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Several developers are constructing high-end residential towers of more than 15 floors. The tallest project by Raheja Developers called Raheja Phoenix will have a 51-storey tower.

DLF has 29 floors in its project Capital Greens, coming up in Moti Nagar, and its Kings and Queens Court project in Greater Kailash II will have eight floors.

Parsvnath Developers has planned over 10 floors its La Tropicana project in Civil Lines and its other project Parsvnath Paramount in Subash Nagar.

Projects launched by private developers and those in the pipeline will generate about 4,000 units in the national Capital.

Raheja Phoenix is part of a redevelopment project that is proposed to come up in Kathputli Colony near Patel Nagar. This is a joint-venture with Dubai-based Arabtec Construction that has built the world’s tallest tower Burj Khalifa in Dubai.

“We are planning 170 high-end units in this project. Raheja Phoenix will be 190 metres tall and will exceed the tallest building in Delhi — the 112-metre Civic Centre. The project envisages the creation of 2,800 2BHK units for displaced slum dwellers in 14-storey structures,” said Navin Raheja, chairman and managing director, Raheja Developers Limited.

“We are technically qualified for 23 such redevelopment projects in and around Delhi, mainly in Old Delhi, and if we qualify as the highest bidder, we will build over a lakh houses. We will naturally go vertical as there is no other option,” he said.

The Supertech Group, which is building the 300-metre, 80-storeyed Supernova project and the 255-metre, 60-storeyed North Eye project in Noida is scouting for land in Delhi.

“We are considering several options in zones under MPD2021 in Delhi. We hope to launch tall buildings in the Capital, following the overwhelming response we received in Noida. Going forward, tall buildings are the only option available due to scarcity of land,” said RK Arora, CMD of the company.

According to GC Christofides, CEO, Arabtech Construction LLC, the challenges of going tall in India are the same as the challenges faced in all other countries.

The easy challenges are utilising the correct systems to allow for the right quality and speed while at the same time handling efficiently the logistical problems specific to tall construction, he said.