CHERANALLOOR: Cheranalloor, which means a ‘Good place to join’, does justice to the meaning of its name. A village, which was once well known for its paddy cultivation, has now become a happening destination for real estate sector with large corporates and NRIs pouring money into the development of real estate. Due to its good connectivity and close proximity to major tourist spots, the real estate business has made a paradigm shift to Cheranalloor from other areas of Kochi.
The demography of Cheranalloor began to change slowly after the Container Road from Vallarpadam terminal to Kalamasserry was built. The Container Road and NH17 intersects here. NH 66 lies very near this strip of land and all these factors have positively played in transforming the area into a ‘hotbed’ for realtors.
According to the civic authorities, a major chunk of Cheranalloor has been already snapped up by the well-known personalities.
“As there is a huge dearth of land in Kochi, the investors have turned to the city outskirts as an investment destination. As a result the property rates here are shooting up like never before. Its proximity to Nedumbasserry airport also adds to its plus points. Among the various other location benefits that Cheranalloor enjoys is its close proximity to Aluva, Kaloor and other prime locations. Also the arrival of top names in the health sector and the classy apartments has had positive effect on the value of the land here,” said Jolly Emblasserry, development standing committee chairman, Cheranalloor panchayat.
Experts pointed out that Kochi’s real estate scenario got further bolstered by its thriving medical tourism as well as residential sectors.
Though, at present, the real estate business is suffering a slight drag and also there is some problems associated with the prices, Cheranalloor proves to be a matchless location due to its affordability. In short, Cheranalloor is all set to make a quantum jump onto Kochi’s real estate map. A strategic study of this area indicates that it is an ideal location for large and mixed use developments.
Admitting that ‘connectivity’ is the biggest advantage which propelled Cheranalloor to a prominent place in Kochi’s real estate map,Paul Raj, secretary, CREDAI told ‘City Express’ that many ‘big projects’ are on the anvil here. “Though many big names in realty sector have zeroed in on this land as their investment destination, I can’t name anyone. It is better to keep our fingers crossed,” he said.
“It’s true that land banks were created here as majority of business magnates have adjudged Cheranalloor as a good location which has got immense market potential. The price of land and other related taxation are low here compared to that in the corporation area,” he added.
The real estate markets in Kochi and Kakkanad area have become saturated. This has prompted the realtors to move here citing several advantages. Until a few years back, Thevara and Kadavantra were the hottest destinations, but now the suburbs are the hotspots. This has caused the land price to shoot sky high in these areas, where as price has fallen sharply in Kakkanad and Kadavanthra,” Paul said.
However, on the flip side, the CREDAI officials raised concerns about the wetlands and paddy fields in the area. “The wetlands and marshes are a serious threat to the construction industry. Hence, this matter too has to be taken into account though the land prices are low here, “ an official said.
Meanwhile, the opposition party in Cheranalloor panchayat alleged that the buyers are illegally reclaiming the pokkali fields here in the name of ‘paper’ projects.
“These are all mere hypes generated by the real estate lobbies who want to occupy a bulk of land here,” said Benny Francis, panchayat member, Cheranalloor.
“We raised this matter before the district collector earlier. But still many illegal land transactions are going on without any hindrance,” he added.