 "Environmentalists say the move could vitiate the intent of Forest (Conservation) Rules, which require state governments to certify that compensatory afforestation land is available")
The land acquisition spree of financially strong developers and entities continued well into 2023 and the year closed with at least 97 separate land deals for over 2707 acres across the country, according to data provided by property consultancy firm Anarock. In 2022, 82 land deals for 2508+ acres were closed across the country. This means that the last two years saw at least 179 land deals for a whopping 5215+ acres closed.
- Of all the land deals in 2023, at least 72% of the total land area closed in 2023 is slated to be used for residential development.
- Of 97 land deals closed in 2023, about 74 deals for over 1,945+ acres are proposed for residential development across tier 1, 2 and 3 cities
- Over 564.75 acres in 6 separate deals are earmarked for Industrial & Logistic Parks and Manufacturing
- 7 deals for over 126 acres are for mixed-use developments
- 5 deals for over 27.5 acres are for commercial and IT Parks
- Approx. 43.35 acres in 5 separate deals earmarked for other asset classes including retail, and hospitality, and some are undecided.
“In terms of transaction size, Ahmedabad was the front-runner with the biggest land transaction in 2023. Land prices in the city are comparably still among the most affordable. With rising commercial and residential demand since the pandemic, developers and entities are making a beeline to Ahmedabad to close land deals here," said Anuj Puri, Chairman, of Anarock.
In terms of the total number of deals, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) clocked the highest with 25 - however, these were for small land parcels covering approx. 289 acres.
NCR came in second-highest with 22 land deals closed in 2023.
Here are the highlights of the report
- Ahmedabad saw the highest land area transacted with 739 + acres in 3 separate deals and accounted for over 27% of the total land transacted in 2023. All 3 deals are for large township projects.
- Bengaluru sealed 11 separate deals accounting for a 16% share of the total land area transacted in 2023, with 424+ acres changing hands - 10 deals for residential development, and one for manufacturing.
- •Land-scarce MMR saw the highest number of deals (25) for approx. 289 acres, earmarked largely for residential (20), 2 deals for mixed-use developments, and 1 deal each for an IT Park, hotel and retail developments
- NCR saw 22 separate land deals for 190+ acres, including 16 deals for 138+ acres in Gurugram, 3 deals for 19+ acres in Noida, and one deal each in Delhi, Faridabad and Greater Noida. The proposed developments in NCR include residential, retail, mixed-use, commercial, and plotted development.
- Hyderabad saw 9 separate deals for 69.5+ acres earmarked for residential development.
- Pune saw 6 separate deals for 49+ acres of land, proposed for residential and mixed-use developments.
- Chennai saw 7 deals for 198+ acres proposed for a township project, IT Park and residential development.
- Kolkata saw 3 land deals for 24.88 acres closed.
- Tier 2 & 3 cities, including Ludhiana, Nagpur Mysuru, Sanand and Dahej in Gujarat, among others, saw at least 10 land deals closed for 646+ acres closed in 2023. The proposed developments include residential development, township project, manufacturing, logistics park, and mixed-use.
