Unsold Vuda houses to become IT units

Visakhapatnam: Finally, there is a ray of hope to Vuda on disposing the unsold duplex units of row housing project at Rushikonda. Vuda is now preparing proposals to lease out the unsold duplex houses to IT companies. It was decided during the recent visit of the state chief secretary SP Tucker that these houses can be offered to IT companies as readymade space for IT sector is not readily available.  

Mr Tucker also visited the row housing area at Rushikonda during his day-long whirlwind tour in Vizag last Friday. It was highlighted in these columns that  these unsold row houses can be offered to IT companies. Vuda also has plans to create an eco-system by starting a cafeteria and other facilities in the row housing arena to attract IT companies.

The CAG too, in its latest report released, rapped Vuda for poor planning in implementing the row housing project, due to which 56 out of 87 duplex houses remained unsold. In its report on general and social sector for 2015, the CAG also pointed that the project has been delayed for almost 3 years. Vuda failed to create necessary social infrastructure and facilities in the housing project due to which many houses remained unsold.

It was in 2007 that Vuda built 88 duplex houses at Rushikonda and out of them even in 2016, 58 units are still lying unsold due to varied reasons like the houses having West facing, not accessible to other facilities and having common walls. Though Vuda, had conducted open auctions to allot the 58 houses in the last few years there were no takers.

The upset price for A- Category unit with 2,066 sft plinth area is Rs 71 lakhs, B- Category unit with 2,114 sft is Rs 72 lakhs, C-Category unit with 2,222 sft is '77 lakh and D-Category unit with 2,386 sft is Rs 82.5 lakh. “The chief secretary had asked us to prepare the proposals in consultation with IT&C department officials and industry representatives on using these row houses for IT sector. We have just started preparing them with the guidelines given to us and will send to the CS,” said a senior official of Vuda.

“Finally, there seems to be some good sense prevailing in the state government deciding to use this unutilised houses to create IT space.  The IT&C department can buy outright with their current year budget of Rs 300 crore which was not fully spent for this year. This will cost Rs 35 crore. Vuda can also be pursued on bulk discount also, if needed. Alternatively, the houses can also be taken on rent. The current rate is Rs 15,000 per house. This can also be reduced to Rs 10,000 on bulk discount. We can give to entrepreneurs who will stay there and work there like in USA startup garage model, where big companies started in garages and became successful,” said Rushikonda IT Parks  Association (RITPA) vice-president O. Naresh Kumar, who wrote a letter to the IT & C officials on this proposal recently.