Apartments / Flats at Hinjewadi – to Buy or not to Buy

The spread of Internet in the late 90's ushered the IT boom in India. The most talked about bug in that time - the Y2K or the millennium bug, gave a big thrust to the IT sector in India. One of the results was the creation of organized software sector in India. Pune, with a young and educated population, was at the forefront of the IT revolution that took place at this time. The then government took cognizance of the importance of IT, and encouraged various state governments to create IT parks.

The Rajiv Gandhi IT Park at Hinjewadi is the result of these efforts. Before the IT boom, no one was aware of Hinjewadi. Forget India, no one even in Maharashtra or even Pune city for that matter, were aware of a small village called Hinjewadi.

The Hinjewadi IT Park will be developed in 4 or more phases. As of date, two phases are complete; land acquisition for the 3rd phase is in progress. Once all the phases are completed, they will cover a massive area of about 2800 acres, and host more international IT giants than exist now.

Assuming that the IT expansion in Hinjewadi will continue, many builders started offering flats (apartments) in Hinjewadi. Their assumption was that the IT professionals would prefer staying in these apartments, so that commuting to their Hinjewadi office would be easy. Once the trend of building flats at Hinjewadi started, many builders jumped into the fray. Hinjewadi is now dotted with apartments and flats – ranging from 2 BHK to s BHK and even lavish penthouses. Investors from outside, especially from Mumbai too evinced a keen interest in these apartment schemes. However, there are concerns that have now slowed down investment in flats at Hinjewadi.

Hinjewadi - The Concerns

The boom in IT sector at Hinjewadi should have augured well for the region. However, it has brought its own share of woes.

There is a huge influx of IT professionals in Hinjewadi every day. Unfortunately, the infrastructure of the place has not kept pace with the rapid development of the place. The main bottleneck for people commuting to Hinjewadi is the lack of adequate roads. IT offices usually start around the same time, and get over at the same time. Since there are only two main roads that commuters use, this creates a major problem for people who want to wish their offices on time. And the woes are compounded by the fact that most of the commuters bring their own cars. Indeed, traffic snarls are very common in the morning and the evening.

To tackle the infrastructure woes, the IT industries in Hinjewadi have started the Hinjewadi Industries Association. It has about 40 members, including big IT companies.

Much as Hinjewadi is being developed, the limited approach to the area is a cause of concern. There are many IT professionals who are not from Pune, and when they offered flats / lavish apartments at Hinjewadi, many a builders assumed people would prefer staying in Hinjewadi. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Lack of adequate roads has deterred people from buying flats in Hinjewadi.

Hinjewadi – the Alternative

Builders have slowly begun to realize that most people still prefer to be closely connected to Pune, and rather than buying apartments at Hinjewadi, they prefer something in the neighbourhood. Such a flat, while being close to Hinjewadi, will allow professionals to commute between their flat to Hinjewadi and between their flat to Pune very easy.

There are a few places near Hinjewadi that fit this bill. Apartments / flats that are close to Hinjewadi AND are close to Hinjewadi. Kasar Amboli is one such place. Located on the road between Hinjewadi and Pune, Kasar Amboli is a good choice to buy apartments. In addition to proximity to Pune and Hinjewadi, the place is also scenic and serene. And a fringe benefit is that the cost of an apartment at Kasar Amboliis very less as compared to Hinjewadi.