10 major metro cities in the making in India

With the advent of the metro and BRTS, Jaipur has ranked itself as a hot destination of urban living in the country. Other factors driving the city's growth are its connectivity via road, rail and air. The Jaipur Metro is expected to become operational this year. According to real estate experts, the functioning of metro will make Jaipur the second-fastest group town in India after Bangalore. Moreover, Jaipur already has a Bus Rapid Transit Service (BRTS).
NH-11 and NH-12 pass through Jaipur district. Furthermore, a good connectivity to NH-8 and affordable real estate prices as compared to Gurgaon and Delhi, and the upgrading of Jaipur Airport to international standards are expected to bring the city into the real estate spotlight.

Vadodara is another tier-II city that is on the radar of rapid real estate growth. Various factors are driving this growth in the city, one major factor being the emerging IT sector and industrial areas. Various automobile ancillary units, pharmaceuticals, chemical manufacturing and glass manufacturing companies too are coming up in the city. The city is also home to a number of reputed large scale industries and PSUs. The Ahmedabad-Vadodara Expressway and DMIC are growth corridors that promise good commercial growth along the highway. These factors will lead to increased employment opportunities.
The city has good accessibility via road, rail and air. The Vadodara BRTS is currently being planned. The DMIC passes through Vadodara, while the Ring Road connects some major roads of the city to DMIC. The city has a good social infrastructure with some major educational institutions being located in the city. All these factors are in turn, giving a boost to the real estate sector in the city.

With the separation of Telangana from the state, Vijayawada is all set to become the new capital of Andhra Pradesh. This will lead to a good boost in the city's real estate sector. Vijayawada is centrally located in the new state and is well connected to other cities in the state. The Vijayawada-Guntur belt is accessible from NH-5 and NH-9. The city also has a smooth railway connectivity to other cities.
Vijayawada is famous for its automobile industry and can emerge as a trading and manufacturing hub in the region. There is an IT park spanning across 32 acres opposite to Gannavaram Airport in the pipeline. The district administration is also planning to construct a software park in the city. Some of the additional planned infrastructure projects include a high speed corridor between the city and Hyderabad. The NH-5 stretch Vijayawada and Guntur is being widened. The city has a good social infrastructure, which is further being developed. With the emergence of the city as the future capital of the state and its growing infrastructure, Vijayawada will undoubtedly witness a boom in real estate.

The Kochi metro is a flagship project, which is expected to be operational by 2016. It is likely to change the face of urban connectivity across Kochi. Once fully operational, the metro will significantly reduce travel time between Aluva and several key micro markets in the city. The first phase of the project is already underway and the work is on track. Other projects such as the ICTT near Port Kochi and integrated transit terminal of Vyttila Mobility Hub are sure shot game changers for Kochi's realty.
Other factors driving the realty in the city is the presence of several industries as well as the growing IT sector. Kochi has several industries including manufacturing, construction, ship-building, spices export, tourism and chemical industries. With a growth in connectivity and booming industrial sector, the city's realty sector is expected to grow fast.

Lucknow is one of the cities where the proposed metro project is expected to give a major push to the real estate sector. There are three proposed metro corridors in the city. There are also four national highways originating in Lucknow viz., NH-24, NH-25, NH-28 and NH-58. Apart from metro, there is also a proposal for a magnetic monorail between Lucknow and Kanpur. If this project becomes a reality, the monorail and the metro will play a major role in decongesting the city's traffic. A six-lane expressway has also been proposed from Agra to Lucknow via Mainpuri and Kannauj. The city also boasts of good social infrastructure. All these factors along with the emerging IT/ITeS industry in the city drive the real estate market here.

Ghaziabad is strategically situated at a distance of only 19 km from Delhi. It not only provides a decongestion option for Delhiites, but also has far more affordable options in property. There are several infrastructure and industrial projects that will boost the realty sector of the city. Some of these projects include the proposed metro, and the Faridabad-Noida-Ghaziabad (FNG) Expressway connecting Ghaziabad and Noida. The Eastern Freight Corridor from Jharkhand and West Bengal to Punjab passes through Ghaziabad. Few other road projects include the Hindon Elevated Road, Northern Peripheral Road (NPR) and widening of NH-24 between UP Gate and Dasna.
Two industrial zones have been identified in UP, spreading over 1,400 km along DMIC. One of them is the Dadri-Noida-Ghaziabad Investment Region. Ghaziabad also offers all the basic amenities and social infrastructure required for an urban living – hospitals, schools, colleges, shopping places, banks, green belts and parks, etc. The city has a huge potential to become a smart city, provided all these projects are completed on time.

Nashik has emerged as a favourable second home destination for several people living in Mumbai and Pune. It has emerged as a good alternative among property buyers due to its pleasant climate and its proximity to both Mumbai and Pune. The property values in the city are less compared to either of these cities as well.
The city has a very good connectivity to several parts of Maharashtra. While NH-3 connects it to Mumbai, NH-50 connects it to Pune. A 4-lane state highway connects the city to Aurangabad and Gujarat. The Mumbai-Nashik Expressway too connects the city to Mumbai. Nashik has a good public transportation system. There are regular buses that provide services between the city and other states. A Greater Nasik Metro service is proposed, which will connect some of the important areas in the city.
The city has a good social infrastructure and climate. Nashik is called the 'wine capital of India'. There are also several tourist destinations in and around the city. Nashik has more green cover than Mumbai and is more peaceful. The city is also considered a garbage dump-free city. Several manufacturing plants are already present in the industrial area here including those of Bosch India, HAL, CEAT, and Mahindra and Mahindra.
Along with these factors, the ongoing DMIC project is expected to influence the real estate market in the city significantly. As a result of a growing connectivity, pleasant environment and employment and cheaper land rates, Nashik will witness

Indore is a city that is expected to gain huge momentum in real estate growth in the coming months. The sector has already got a major boost in the last 12-18 months, thanks to the much touted 'Super Corridor'. The Super Corridor stretches along a 12km distance from Vijay Square to the airport. The location of this corridor has emerged as the biggest selling point for the city as it decongests other roads to the airport and junctions. A fewmajor infrastructural developments are also proposed in the city including a sports complex, medical hub, a new railway station and educational campuses.
The development of the corridor has led to an influx of several IT giants such as TCS and Infosys who have acquired huge pieces of lands to develop their SEZs. There are several other manufacturing plants coming up in the city too. Moreover, the DMIC Investment Region lies just about 25 km south-west of Indore. Experts believe that more than 80,000 new employment opportunities will be created in the city in the coming months.
Localities around the Super Corridor too have transformed into a hub for real estate development. According to latest reports, areas around the corridor have already witnessed a considerable appreciation in the average price range.

Bhiwadi is just about 25 kilometres from Manesar, which is an emerging industrial and real estate hub adjoining Gurgaon. Both areas have brought the attention of buyers and investors due to their potential growth. Projects such as NH-8, NH-71B and the proposed Neemrana airport in the proximity of Bhiwadi are expected to drive the realty sector in the city. Bhiwadi is well connected with the upcoming Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) Expressway. There is a regional rapid transit system (RRTS) proposed from Delhi to Alwar.
Bhiwadi is an emerging industrial area with several industries such as electronics, steel, furnace, engineering, printing, textiles, pharmaceuticals, food processing, cables and rolling mills. The Tapukara Industrial Area, situated on the Bhiwadi-Alwar Road is a major attraction in the region. There are several SEZs coming up in and around the city. According to experts, more than 50,000 people may migrate to the city for employment in the next five years.
The Khushkhera-Bhiwadi-Neemrana region is being developed as an integrated industrial township under the DMIC and western freight corridor project. This is housing a world class knowledge city as well as residential, commercial and industrial zones. The city also has all basic amenities along with ample drinking water supply. Compared to other areas of the NCR, realty prices in Bhiwadi are still reasonable. As such, Bhiwadi has emerged as a credible alternative to Gurgaon in terms of affordable housing

Ahmedabad is considered one of the next biggest real estate markets in India. The key driving factors include rapid industrialisation and infrastructure development. The BRTS, which has improved the overall connectivity in Ahmedabad is one of the key contributors to the infrastructure. This has in turn, given boost to the city's real estate market.The city also has excellent connectivity, social and civic infrastructure, and most importantly lower capital values compared to those of many Tier-I cities.
Ahmedabad has several expressways such as NH-8, 8A, 8B and 8C passing through it. According to experts, the city's realty will get a major boost once DMIC is complete. There are also several key state highways such as Sanand-Sarkhej Road passing through the city. These highways have paved the way for SMEs to flourish along the highways. The Ahmedabad-Vadodara Expressway is an example of an SME belt, where several big ticket corporate houses have started flourishing, contributing to the region's growth as well as the realty sector.
The under-construction Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT) located about 12 km from the Ahmedabad International Airport, aspires to offer global firms a world-class infrastructure and facilities. All these factors are expected to provide more than 10 lakh direct and indirect number of jobs by 2022.