Marina Boom in India ?

Imagine a super yacht anchorage and water-front entertainment village, a recreation complex for visitors and the residents of the surrounding city. Envision a deepwater port of entry with first-class berthing facilities, a thriving marine commercial park and foreign trade zone, and successful cruise and cargo industries. In yet another sign of the rich getting richer, an increasing number of people are buying pleasure boats. Livemint gets talking to some of the key players in the industry to find out the possibilities.

Ajay Narang, Yachting Association Secretary General
India is likely to attract global attention during the Volvo Ocean Race : the premier round-the-globe yachting event held every three years. Pleasure sailing is on a growth path. Kochi will provide the stopover and the Kerala Government will build a ‘racing village’ across more than 2.5 acres, complete with accommodation for sailors, officials and more than 700 back-up personnel for the seven teams, a food court, theatre for cultural shows, and a nearby guest house complex for an expected 20,000 domestic and international tourists.

Shakeel Kudrolli, Aquasail
Mumbai doesn’t have ‘good water quality’, the sea is choppy and the tide strong, and dredging can prove prohibitively expensive. Owners of yachts and smaller pleasure boats can dock their vessels in Goa, and plan their vacations around sailing.

Phiroze Contractor, MD, Ava Marine
All of a sudden, all these boats are being imported, we are overflowing, we have run out of space. A proper marina will save space, more vessels can be accommodated, and docking made easier, reducing damage. Other advantages: owners will not have to invest in dinghies to reach their yachts moored in deeper waters, supplies of fuel and water for cleaning boats will be easier, and spillage of oil—now carried in jerry cans—will be history.

Malav Shroff, Ocean Blue
It’s the typical Indian mentality…first they buy Porsches, then they think of roads. Now people are buying boats, they will think of building marinas later.
Shroff senses a huge business opportunity in the anticipated shortage in docking facilities, and others agree. To them, Goa, Chennai and Kochi provide the maximum opportunity.

Hope Floats for Real Estate in India !

A United Arab Emirates- based project development company, Rakeen, and Chennai-based mining firm Trimex Group plan to jointly invest up to $5 billion (Rs19,850 crore) over five years in the Indian real estate market. They have partnered to form a 50:50 joint venture company known as Rakindo Developers Pvt. Ltd. Rakindo plans to build a first of its kind marina outside Chennai on the East Coast Road to Puducherry in Tamil Nadu.. The marina will have resorts and luxury apartments. The company will also be building infrastructure facilities in the marina. The marina will be like a mini port of 3.5km. The company is looking at more such marina projects in India.