NEWS Economy & Realty report The Knight Frank November 2011 report on Economy & Realty says that the global economic crisis notwithstanding, the recent move by the government of introducing the Draft Real Estate bill has brought some optimism. The draft Real Estate Bill seeks to regulate all real estate projects being developed in India with land area exceeding 4,000 sqm. This is the first such bill at the central level which will directly regulate the real estate sector and adjudicate any dispute between the buyer, promoter and government authority.   The bill attempts to overcome the shortcomings of the existing system in the real estate market where buyer’s interest is frequently ignored by the promoter as well as the government. The bill tries to identify these problem areas and fix time bound responsibility on the promoters to disclose certain necessary information regarding their projects in order to bring in greater level of transparency. The recent cases of home buyers being cheated or receiving deficient service from developers has prompted the government to include harsh penalties on promoters to deter them from committing such acts.   There are certain shortcomings in the bill despite the best efforts of the government authorities in drafting it, says the Report. The bill seems to focus more on regulation of the real estate sector rather than development, which is the need of the hour. Additionally, many important stakeholders of the real estate market such as brokers, sanctioning authorities, registrars, landlords and others are kept out of the ambit of the bill. Even secondary market transactions including lease agreements and landlord-tenant relationship has been kept out. Beyond Squarefeet to manage K Mall in Kerala The Mall Management Company, Beyond Squarefeet has been hired by the Malabar Group to manage its first mall ‘K Mall’, in Kollam, Kerala. Beyond Squarefeet will re-orient market & lease and also do the management of the 2, 04,000 sqft mall. Strategically located on the City’s high street, on NH 47, K Mall is the only mall in Kollam, catering to over 2.6 million consumers.   Based on its research & findings, Beyond Squarefeet converted the Mall into an “Eater-tainment” hub, with emphasis on F&B, FEC & Miniplex. It has also created a unique tenant distribution to create customer delight and ensure equal footfalls on all floors. The mall has three screen miniplex spread on two levels, 15 kitchens with Food Court and a Double Decker Family Entertainment Centre (FEC). The mall offers an impressive atrium with 100% atrium facing stores with wide frontages and ample car parking facility for consumers. ISS-CIFS study on future FM Technological advancements, global warming, resource scarcity, sustainability developments and transformative roles in labour markets will have an impact on the FM industry globally, accordingly to a study on FM 2020.   The study conducted by ISS and The Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies (CIFS) on the future of FM involved more than 300 senior executives from ISS and 50 specialists from the Global FM network. The study aimed at developing a set of global scenarios for the future of the FM industry and to bring awareness about the future trends, uncertainties and opportunities that will have the greatest impact on the industry. While sustainability will continue to be an important trend over the next decade, the challenging factors will include energy usage, water and waste management and indoor ecology. Web based software for Residential Complexes Eukleia Technologies Pvt. Ltd. flagship brand “ApnaComplex” is a SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) based system designed keeping in mind the problems that huge societies face and are unable to cope-up with. This system provides a platform that helps society management committees in maintaining accounts and finances, maintaining facilities, registering complaints, listing residents, vendors and staff, parking lot management and income expense tracking that saves both-time and money.   Not only the managing committee gets the access to the information, but every individual house in the complex get their own login and a password to get all the information accessible from any part of the world at their fingertips. The system is secured with the SSL technology to transfer the data from one system to the other and it gives the users a relief that their identity and information is secure. ApnaComplex was entitled as one of the top 10 innovative products at NASSCOM Product Launch Pad 2010 which states the practical applications and widely spread usability.   Page 1