Why do we need Skyscrapers?

King Johnson Koyyada: While cities like Chennai and Mumbai are blocked by the sea on one side, Delhi has no room for expansion. But Hyderabad metropolitan has no geographical barriers. The city has full potential to expand on all four directions and apartments can be constructed at any approved location without much difficulty. However, ignoring this, some developers are dependent only on West Hyderabad. They don’t dare to go to other places in the city and instead, are focusing on building 40 and 50 storey skyscrapers. Why are they building only skyscrapers without considering the market conditions? What are the pros and cons of buying in them?

Hyderabad city has scope for expansion in four directions. Patancheru, Shamirpet, Shamshabad, Shadnagar, Ramoji Film City, Ghatkesar, Chevella, Shankarpally – it takes just an hour to reach Hyderabad from any of these places! If transportation like Metro Rail, MMTS, suburban trains are started, this journey time can be further reduced. But some developers are building skyscrapers without considering such facts. When there is no shortage of space in the market, why are the builders confined to certain areas? Why are they only constructing 40-50 storey buildings? Is it necessary to build them in Hyderabad? These are the questions being posed by several buyers. In an area like Miyapur, some land owners are competing to build 50 floors. People are begging the government not to allow skyscrapers in places like Miyapur, Bachupally, and Pragathinagar, as these areas already have high population density and have huge traffic congestion.

This is could be main reason

Unlimited FSI scheme is available in Telangana State. Depending on the area of ??the plot and the size of the road in front, there is scope for taking up constructions of any height only in Telangana. Although this policy has been in place since 2006, the number of skyscrapers is rising only in the last two or three years. In the past, the higher the apartments were, the more setback that they had to leave. But, the Telangana government has removed this provision. Due to this, the developers have got more built-up area available. After realising this, the land owners started giving the land for development to the builders who are ready to construct more built-up area. As a result, the competition between developers has increased and they are competing with each other to build skyscrapers. What are the pros and cons of buying flats in these apartments? What factors should buyers consider while choosing such flats? Real Estate Guru gives you a glimpse into these factors.

Pros

•  The city’s skyline might look differently due to the high number of skyscrapers. The business transactions and also tourist traffic will increase.
•  The higher the skyscrapers are, the better is the space utilisation.
• More families can live in less land area. In commercial buildings, more companies can be operated in less area.
•  In skyscrapers, air and light are abundant due to absence of any obstacles. They are the best bet for people seeking to live in green buildings.
•  The construction of tall buildings requires highly skilled engineers, architects and technical personnel to design the building. It is also very expensive.
•  Skyscrapers are built on less land area. The quality of the respective soils should be fully examined. A building may collapse if the soil is loose. Therefore, the local body authorities should give permission for high-rise buildings only after careful inspection of soil quality.
•  Due to the large number of skyscrapers, the city looks attractive. The beauty of the city is doubled with the skyscrapers.
• People who live in high-rise structures live peacefully without traffic noises.

Cons

Security is a matter of concern. Experts say that notwithstanding the size, the high-rise buildings are not immune to natural calamities. Since a skyscraper requires a massive foundation, there is a higher risk of damage to the foundation in the event of natural calamities like floods and earthquakes. So, before buying flats in these skyscrapers, obtain complete structural quality information from the developers.

• Skyscrapers are expensive to construct. Once the construction starts, it is not easy to complete them. One should buy properties in these structures only after ensuring that the developer is capable of completing them.
• The building will look crowded as too many families live in a small area. If you want to go out of the house, you have to wait for the lifts.
  * As a large percentage of people live in less space, the pressure on facilities like electricity, drinking water and drainage increases. If the local bodies do not develop infrastructure like roads and drainages in the respective areas, then things will only get worse.
• Another challenge is that in case of any fire accidents, we do not have the necessary vehicles and fire fighting equipment to reach upto 40-50 floors. There is an urgent need to increase them in East and West Hyderabad where more skyscrapers are coming up. The Fire Services department must equip itself to reach out to the top most floors, in case of any emergency.
• No matter how pet-friendly an apartment may be, living on the top floor can present other problems. Your neighbours might be scared to share an elevator with your pet. Therefore, you may need to use the stairs every time you take your dog for a walk.
• There will be difficulties in painting exterior walls, fixing air conditioners, repairing leking gas pipelines. All kinds of simple home maintenance and up-gradation work can be difficult in a high-rise building.
• If leakages occur in the flats of the upper floor residents, it will be difficult to repair them. Especially if water is seeping into the house from outside walls, the problem is serious. So, builders have to construct external walls very carefully.
• Parking too will be a challenge. The occupants will have to suffer for life, even if there is slightest negligence in designing the internal traffic management.