'Delay in Clearance Escalates Housing Projects' Costs By 15%'

Posted on: Friday, 20 June 2008, 00:00 CDT By Prabhakar Sinha NEW DELHI: A day after HDFC chief Deepak Parekh pointed out that environmental clearances were leading to time delays and hence cost overruns in housing projects, industry body Confederation of Real Estate Development Association of India (CREDAI) has put a number to it. CREDAI Secretary Rohit Raj Modi told TOI on Tuesday that these add at least 10% to 15% to costs, which ultimately has to be passed on to consumers. CREDAI Chairman Kumar Gera, a well-known Pune-based developer, also concurred with the view that environment clearances leads to escalation in the cost of houses developed by builders. This goes contrary to the government's intention of providing houses for everyone in the country, he pointed out. All housing projects with covered areas of more than... [read full story]