Metro To Unlock Potential Of Pune's Emerging Real Estate Markets

It was in 2016 when the Union Cabinet gave a go-ahead for the construction of Phase-I of the Pune Metro. The Metro connectivity that has been instrumental in the growth of real estate in other major cities, including the national capital region, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Chennai, has worked its magic on Pune's real estate market, too. With the laying of the foundation stone of the Pune Metro’s third line, more real estate pockets are now expected to witness a growth.

Line I: The Line I of the Pune Metro covers a distance of 16.65 kilometres, running between Pimpri-Chinchwad to Swargate. It has 15 Metro stations, nine elevated and six underground. However, recently, the standing committee of the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) approved the detailed project report (DPR) for the extension of the route to Nigdi. The 4.5-km route will become a part of Line I once the government gives its final nod. The route will have three stations, Chinchwad, Akurdi and Nigdi.

Line II: The Line II of the Pune Metro will run between Vanaz and Ramwadi covering a distance of 14.7 km. A completely elevated route, there will be 16 stations on this stretch. This line will connect with other two lines at the Civil Court Station.

Line III: The Line III, the foundation stone of which was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 18, is the longest route of the Pune Metro. The 23.3-km line will be completely elevated with 23 Metro stations. The route will be constructed in two phases – Hinjewadi to Balewadi and Balewadi to Shivajinagar. Maharashtra government on March 8 allocated Rs 1,722-crore budget for the land acquisition. 

The biggest beneficiaries

The first corridor will connect some of the key commercial and residential areas of Pune, including Swargate, Dapodi, PCMC and now Nigdi, among others. These areas are mostly flooded with IT parks, special economic zones and key government offices. The second corridor that will connect Vanaz to Ramwadi will cut through the first corridor and will run from the west to the east of the city. It will intersect with the first corridor at ASI. This line will have more residential localities, including Kalyani Nagar, Mangalwar Peth, Anand Nagar, Ideal Colony, Kothrud, among others.

The newly introduced line is expected to become a connecting route between the IT parks in Hinjewadi and residential localities towards Balewadi and Shivajinagar.

While the first corridor will be concentrated more on commercial destinations, the second corridor will be capturing the residential localities.

Property prices of key residential areas

Here is the price trend of some of the residential areas falling on the Metro route:

Corridor One

Pimpri: With a livability score of 9.4 on the scale of 10 on PropTiger.com, the average property price in this area at the end of October 2018 was Rs 5,931 per sq ft.

Chinchwad: With a livability score of 9.2 on the scale of 10 on PropTiger.com, the average property price in Chinchwad at the end of October was Rs 6,141 per sq ft.

Pimple Saudagar: With a livability score of 9.4 on the scale of 10 on PropTiger.com, the average property price in this area at the end of October was Rs 6,345 per sq ft.

Dapodi: Home to Dapodi Railway Station a part of Central Railways has a livability score of 8.8 and had an average price of Rs 5,945 per sq ft at the end of October.

Shivaji Nagar: One of the top residential localities that will have a Metro station, has a livability score of 9.3. The average price of property here stood at Rs 14,517 per sq ft.

Corridor Two

Kothrud: Known as the fastest developing suburb of Asia, Kothrud offers a livability score of 9.3. The average property price at the end of October was Rs 10,032 per sq ft.

Kalyani Nagar: One of the best localities to reside in Pune, Kalyani Nagar enjoys a livability score of 9.7. Property here was priced at an average of Rs Rs 7,802 per sq ft at the end of October.

Sangamwadi: Lying close to Mangalwar Peth station, Sangamwadi is one of the oldest localities and has a livability score of 9.6. It had an average property price of Rs 19,587 per sq ft at the end of October.

Deccan Gymkhana: With a station at the Metro line the locality a prime residential area in Pune. It has a livability score of 9.2. The average property price that was prevalent here at the end of October was Rs 12,916 per sq ft.

Viman Nagar: In proximity to Ramwadi station, this locality is known for elite educational institutions and key IT offices. The livability score of this area is 9.2 and average property price is Rs 8,884 per sq ft.

Corridor Three

Balewadi: Balewadi is considered to be a prime locality of Pune with a rise of 20 per cent in property prices in past 67 months. With per sq ft property prices standing at Rs 6,432 at the end of October 2018, Balewadi has over 100 ready-to-move-in projects. The livability score of the locality is 8.8.

Baner: Falling on this line, Baner is one of the emerging residential localities of Pune. With a livability score of 9.1, the average property prices of this locality stood at Rs 7,174 per sq ft at the end of October’18.

Aundh: With a livability score of 9.7, Aundh is considered to be a prime and centrally located property market of Pune. The property prices here have witnessed a two per cent drop in past 67 months closing at Rs 8,228 per sq ft at the end of October 2018. However, with the coming of Metro, this locality might witness a growth.

Note: Livability score is a score given to a locality on the scale of 10.