The price of sand is set to shoot up once again in the region and in all likelihood, the prices will touch Rs. 20,000 per a truck-load during the next two months, if the State government continues to delay the implementation of its new policy on sale of sand, feel builders and suppliers.
Real estate dealers, at present, are forced to cough up Rs.15,000 for getting a lorry load of sand as against the Rs.4,000 four months ago and in Visakhapatnam, suppliers are said to have charged even Rs.20,000 a lorry in the past few weeks. Owing to the steep rise in price, a majority of individuals, who are constructing houses, have put the works on hold, while real estate developers are continuing as they have to meet the deadline given to clients to hand over flats.
The situation is taking a toll on the realtors. Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (CREDAI), Vijayawada chapter, president Y.V. Ramana Rao said: “Despite losses, we are not putting additional financial burden on clients who already booked flats with us.” Prospective buyers looking for a double-bed room flat at an estimated Rs. 30 lakh have to cough up an additional Rs. 3 lakh in the wake of rise in the sand prices, he said.
The association has been requesting the government to open new sand reaches at the earliest in view of the problems being faced by the property owners. At present, the city alone needs 500 lorries of sand every day to cater to the needs of builders and those constructing individual houses. Though the government has announced that Self Help Groups (SHGs) would be entrusted to oversee sand mining activity, it is yet to take a proper shape so far and the delay is leading to the increase in sand prices.
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