One of the First SWAMIH Funded Project Ready for Delivery

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Mumbai-based CCI Projects Pvt Ltd's maiden residential project Rivali Park is among the first projects in the country to have received funding for stuck projects under the government-sponsored Rs 25,000 crore SWAMIH Fund. It is also likely to be the first project in India that will see delivery of over 700 apartments in April. The project was sanctioned Rs 180 crores by the fund as the last mile funding for completion of the project that comprises six buildings spread across 7 acres. Two towers in the initial phase have already been handed over to buyers. The total land parcel is spread across 14 acres. “All the six buildings are complete. The completion of the project by April will benefit around 600+ homebuyers, said Rohan Khatau, director, CCI Projects Pvt Ltd. An amount of Rs 180 crore was a conservative estimate that we arrived at together as we did not want an aggressive business plan on collection and sales. We were not too sure about cash flows and therefore a conservative estimate of Rs 180 crore was drawn up and Rs 117 crore have been sanctioned to us,” he said. Once the project is delivered, the company is also expecting to recover significant dues from homebuyers and from the sale of the unsold units. We are also hoping to realise significantly more than that amount, he said. The project received the last mile funding from the SWAMIH Fund by February-end in 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic. “We were at the final stage at that time and had a year’s worth of work left to go. The initial three-four months of COVID-19 were a washout as no labour force was available,” he said. Work resumed in full swing by August-September 2020. “Right now we are at the final stage and have received the Fire NOC. And in the process of applying for the occupation certificate,” he said. As for RERA timelines, the original completion timeline was December 2019 that was extended until December 2020. After COVID-19, an extension of six months has also been given by the Authority. June 2021 is the new RERA timeline for delivery of the project. The project comprises 708 apartments spread over six buildings and each of the towers are of different heights. The project consists of two 42-storey buildings, high-rise towers, two 11-storeys and two 7-storeys. “It also comprises several configurations – 1 BHK to 4BHK apartments. It consists of duplex townhouses which are primarily 3-BHK units that are 2-storeys bungalow apartments. We have 12 such units in the project. In all, there are a total of 708 apartments,” he said. The project did not require funding for all the six buildings as they started at different times. “But they are all part of one layout and are all structurally interconnected - there is a common courtyard and common amenities room. They have, therefore, to be completed together,” he said. The company intends launching its next phase towards the end of the year. “The planning process has already begun,” he added. Since September 2018, the lender had stopped funding and substantially increased their cost of borrowing due to the NBFC crisis. CCP’s cash flow crunch was resolved when it became one of the first to avail the loan from the SWAMIH fund in March 2020. Irfan A. Kazi, Chief Investment Officer at SBICAP Ventures Ltd had said that SBICAP Ventures, the manager for the government's Rs 25,000-crore stressed-asset fund, will be delivering about 17 housing projects consisting of more than 6,000 homes by the end of the financial year 2022. Two projects, 710 units in Mumbai and 600 units in Rewari, will be delivered by April 2021 itself, he had said. The fund, set up under the Special Window for Affordable and Mid Income Housing (SWAMIH) by the government, is looking to complete 17 projects by March 2022. The fund has so far given approvals to around 164 projects involving an investment of more than Rs 15,000 crore, which will help complete around 1,00,000 homes. Of this, 55 housing projects have received final approvals and about 109 have got preliminary sanctions. In November 2019, the central government announced a Rs 25,000-crore SWAMIH Investment Fund to help complete over 1,500 stalled housing projects, including those that have been declared non-performing assets (NPAs) or had been admitted for insolvency proceedings. There are a total of 5.02 lakh units that are presently stuck or delayed, as of the end of 2020, across the top seven cities. Their total value is estimated at over Rs 4.07 lakh crore, an analysis by Anarock has said, adding that National Capital Region (NCR) and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) together account for a 74 percent 'majority share' of currently stuck/delayed units, while the southern metros of Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad add up to a small 8 percent.