Realty bytes

Firdose Vandrevala, chairman of property developer Hirco Developments and who previously headed Motorola India, VSNL Broadband and Tata Power, had this unique comparison between real estate and sectors like telecom and power. Asked to differentiate, Vandrevala lived up to his reputation for forthrightness. "In telecom, it is like a race where one is running along with other and completes the lap as fast as possible," he said. "In real estate, a developer is like a hunter holding a dull torch and old rifle and venturing into a jungle." And on regulators: "In other sectors, regulators are like referees who blow the whistle if someone makes mistakes; but in real estate, regulators seem to be like referees who blow the whistle at your every move and declare you out."