The recent flooding in Chennai has exposed the illegalities and the bad planning behind the newly developed areas, including the OMR region, Palavakkam, Rajiv Gandhi Salari, (Old Mamallapuram Road), Perumbakkam, Velachery, Oragadam, Mudichur, Manapakkam, Wallajabad, Tambaram and the surrounding villages, which were once marshy wetlands.
The prices of properties across these flooded areas and surrounding areas have taken a beat and the prices crumbled.
The sales of properties will be down for a longtime in Chennai. Rents in the flooded and surrounding areas will be halved.
REAL ESTATE SECTOR IS BOMBED IN CHENNAI!!
Home loans sanctioned by the Banks and project loans sanctioned to the builders financial institutions remains to be paid. The banks may defer the repayment by few months, but one has to pay the EMI, even though, their apartments/houses are damaged and destructed by the floods.
Illegal buildings and irregular buildings, which are affected by the floods, may not be able to submit their insurance claims.
The IT companies vigorously put up their stations in these newly developed areas despite the fact that they are all low laying areas, marshy wetlands and the streams and rivers drain into the sea. To avail the benefits from the Government, some of these IT Parks developed by notorious builders across the valleys and the drains which got flooded due to their lack of knowledge, Hydrological history and common sense.
Despite the absence of basic infrastructure or environmental due diligence, a slew of residential projects has come up, and prices reign high and Buyers of properties paid huge sums anywhere between Rs.25,00,000/- to Rs.2,00,00,000/- per ground or 2,400 sft and now nobody will buy the same even at few thousands. But the borrowed money or home loan must be reapid. No tenants, no income and the foolish buyers have to shift to other locations and pay rent as well.
Over 20,000 to 30,000 houses/apartments along OMR, 4,000 in Perumbakkam, 2,000 in Manapakkam, 2,000 in Velachery, and over 6,000 in Oragadam have been damaged by the floods. Areas like OMR are natural aquifers and the stretch has seen unplanned ribbon development. Localities behind OMR are on the flood plains of the Buckingham Canal or on wetlands.
The older areas like George Town, Mylapore and surrounding areas, though flooded, have fared better than many newly developed areas.
Most roads lack drainage and gradient alignment, while projects lack sewage lines. Storm water drains do not follow the gradient and have been laid randomly resulted in the flooding of surrounding areas. Illegal and unauthorized construction and development on the river beds and granting of pattas near the river shores of coovum and adayar have resulted in major disaster.
It is said that the death toll is much more than published.