The 2nd wave already has caused a lot of damage to the real estate sector. Fearing the 3rd wave, realtors have aggressively started vaccinating their workforce so that projects do not suffer.
By Varun Singh
The second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic has been more ‘devastating’ on the real estate sector than the first one, as new launches and sales have fallen drastically since April this year.
There has been a fear amongst realtors of project delays due to the local lockdowns across different States of the country. The real estate industry dealt with few key challenges during this period such as labour shortage, financial constraints, approval delays, hike in the raw material prices, and the weakening customer demand due to the uncertainty in the market.
As the industry gears up for the third wave of the pandemic, the first and foremost thing in their back of mind is to vaccinate their workforce as early as possible. Industry bodies like NAREDCO and CREDAI too have written to the Government to allow vaccination of the labourers at the construction sites.
Commenting about the vaccination of the labourers Ashok Mohanani, President, NAREDCO Maharashtra, said, “The country is expected to be affected by a third wave of the pandemic around July-August. Hence, we are working closely with the Government to procure the vaccination slots for the industry-wage workers. Further to this, we have also written to the Government to allow the vaccination of laborers at the construction sites. A well-paced vaccination drive can help reduce the impact of the third wave.”
Reiterating the same Pritam Chivukula, Co-Founder & Director, Tridhaatu Realty and Hon. Secretary, CREDAI-MCHI, said, “We look forward to getting the labourers vaccinated at the earliest who are the real nation builders. Their vaccination will streamline the construction activities and help build the dream homes of the people of India.”
Taking the cue from the second wave, realtors too have been cautious and are working towards vaccinating their workforce at the earliest possible.
The Wadhwa Group, is vaccinating its employees in a phased manner. In the first phase, the developer has almost vaccinated two-third of their workforce across the city with at least one dose and is soon planning to vaccinate the remaining workforce in the second phase. The developer mentioned that its foremost priority is to get all the associates, their families, and the entire ecosystem vaccinated at the earliest.
Another realtor from Mumbai, Group Satellite had rolled out a week-long on-premises vaccination drive at their commercial center Solitaire Corporate Park at Andheri in Mumbai. The Group had partnered with Apollo Clinic to facilitate the vaccination drive. Over 50+ offices with over 4500 employees along with their family members took the benefit of this vaccination drive.
Abhishek Jain, Chief Operating Officer, Satellite Developers Pvt. Ltd. said, “Group Satellite is committed to the health and well-being of its employees and in line with this ethos it had conducted this vaccination drive in strict accordance with all Government-approved protocols. The company is extending all possible efforts to get its employees, as well as the members in their corporate premises, vaccinated.”
JP Infra Mumbai Private Limited too had arranged a vaccination drive in two different phases at their head office in Andheri, Mumbai. During this drive, the company managed to vaccinate over 1500 individuals comprising their employees, customers, and channel partners along with their respective family members. The company had collaborated with Surana Group of Hospitals to facilitate the vaccination drive.
Nahar Group, at Chandivali, Andheri a few days ago conducted a vaccination drive for all its construction site workers along with its employees. With this vaccination drive, the company vaccinated more than 200 site workers and all Nahar group employees.
Many realtors are focusing on vaccinating their employees, largely through partnerships with private health care providers and, in some cases, government vaccination centers. While in March, everyone took a backseat owing to the second wave of Covid, and workers were forced to stop work in Mumbai city due to the lockdown restrictions, the industry seems prepared and ready to take on the virus attack with timely vaccination.
Also Read: Housing Sales Dip 58% Q-o-Q Amid 2nd Wave
