The official liquidator has invited fresh bids for the prime land in the city of the Calico mills for the third time again; past two attempts to auction land failed
The official liquidator for the historic Calico Mills has invited fresh bids for the prime land in city that once belonged to the now closed textile mill. The question uppermost in his mind must be whether anyone would be willing to offer ‘appropriate’ value for the mill land this third time.
The second time fresh bids were invited for the land, the upset price was found too high by potential bidders.
The official liquidator has tried to auction the land twice in the past but his efforts failed to attract aggressive bidding for the land which is located right in the middle of the city.
The first and biggest lot marked for auction includes 2.39 lakh sq meter of land on the Calico Mills premises. The upset value of the lot for the third attempt at auctioning the land has been fixed at Rs386 crore. It was Rs203.46 crore the first time an effort was made in April 2010 to auction the land. In the absence of aggressive bidding during the first attempt, the plot was sold for Rs211 crore to Mumbai’s Ajmera Group and Ahmedabad’s Bakeri Realty. But this auction was quashed by the Gujarat high court which ordered a fresh auction.
“In the second attempt in November 2010, the biggest chunk failed to attract any bidder as the potential bidders found the land cost too high,” said a source.
The high court again ordered a fresh auction. The official liquidator has not made any changes in the upset price for the land parcels that were fixed for the second attempt at auctioning the land. Hence, a repeat of the failed second attempt is likely the third time as well, said sources.
“Looking at the current market conditions, it will be very hard to find any bidder who will be ready to invest such a huge amount in the land,” said Vijay Shah, a city-based developer. As per the jantri rates, the biggest land parcel costs around Rs263 crore, while the upset value has been fixed at Rs386.73 crore.
According to sources in the real estate market, the Calico Mills land is suitable for setting up a township or a commercial market. Land in the industrial area of Danilimda which is close by is selling like hot cakes in the range of Rs30,000 to Rs40,000 per square yard, said sources. The workers of the closed mill are yet to get around Rs29 lakh as unpaid dues. If the auction goes through, they can get their money quickly.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}