The Lockdown implemented across the nation to control the outburst of coronavirus has halted real estate projects all over India. Real estate sector is facing a tough time as they have to take care of one of the most important part of real estate which is labour. Many laborers have taken off to their hometowns and many developers might face a shortage of labour when the lockdown is lifted. However, the biggies anticipated it and are taking care of their laborers so that they should not face the shortage of labour when work resumes.
As per the research as many as 156.2 million housing units are currently under construction across top seven cities in India. Of this, nearly 46.6 million units were to be delivered in 2020. Millions of laborers come to Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Faridabad and Ghaziabad from other states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan for wages and daily work. They may be a hawker, rickshaw puller, security guards and vegetable/fruit sellers. Mostly are those who are working at construction sites. There is no denying that the daily wages of workers will have a profound impact on the Indian economy. Also, the government should be prepared to deal with the effects of changes in the behaviour of migrant workers.
Speaking on the same Mr. Navin Raheja CMD Raheja Developers said that most of the Labours from all over the country come to Delhi NCR. Announcement of lockdown was really disturbing for all of them and this may affect those who were not standing with their laborers during the difficult situation. This time it’s our moral duty to support those who are working for you. We have assured that not a single worker from our site decides to migrate and provided food and ration so that the workers and their family may live comfortably during the critical situation.
Almost all the major developers saw this coming and timely took steps to ensure that the construction should not get affected when lockdown is lifted. Mr.Pradeep Aggarwal, Chairman of Signature Global, says, “To assure zero migration from our sites we have given the necessary items like flour, rice, pulses, masks, etc, to our workers. Along with this, daily earnings were also credited in their bank accounts.”
Signature Global, the pioneers of affordable housing, is taking care of the labour associated with them in various projects and in that effect they disbursed Rs 7 lakh to the labourers staying in their projects, which was in addition to providing them with essential items. Gaurs Group, which is a renowned name in the real estate sector in Delhi NCR, is ensuring that labourers working across its various projects receive proper nutrition. The Group is providing one month’s ration and other necessary items to all its worker families.
Omaxe Ltd, one of the leading names in the real estate sector in India, has distributed thousands of ration packets consisting of 5 kg of flours, 5 kg of rice, 1 kg daal and 1 packet of salt in both Chandigarh & Ludhiana. ABA Corp is providing meals and shelters to over 1450 on-site labourers.
Bhumika Group is contributing actively to ease out the difficulties of migrant labourers and daily wage earners. The Group has distributed ration to 200 migrant labourers in Udaipur and more than 150 labourers in Chennai for the entire 21 day lockdown period.
For many other realtors whose labour has migrated already, they might face a major problem. Even if the lockdown is partially lifted, it would take some time before those developers could resume construction work in full swing, as most of their laborers have left for their hometowns. Many may opt to stay back in their villages longer, fearing the pandemic. This will lead to shortage of labour and further project delays.
