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WordPress.com Bloggers Who Covered the Biggest News Stories of 2011

by Paul Joseph December 5, 2011 Uncategorized

As 2011 comes to end, we thought it’d be interesting to look back at the events that made headlines this year, and a few of the bloggers who were there in person (or closely connected to the events) to document history in the making. Here’s a recap of some of the biggest news stories of the year, as blogged by WordPress.com users. January 25: Tens of thousands of people take to the streets of Cairo and other Egyptian cities to demand an end to the rule of President Hosni Mubarak. Cairo-based journalist Max Strasser reported on the events from Istanbul. Marilyn Gardner posted updates on the situation after speaking with her daughter, who was living in Egypt for school. flickr.com/photos/sarahcarr March 11: Japan is hit with an 8.9-magnitude earthquake, the strongest in its history. The author of amblerangel.wordpress.com was at a grocery store in Shibuya-ku when it happened. She recounted the experience in We’re Being Shaken and Stirred in Japan . According to Liz Tagami, who was at Narita International Airport when the quake hit, “ It started as a silent rolling wave. “ amblerangel.wordpress.com June 24: New York legalizes same-sex marriage, becoming the largest state in the U.S. to pass the law. It goes into effect thirty days later on July 24, 2011. Talkaboutequality.wordpress.com was on site at the New York City Clerk’s office to chat with the couples who lined up for marriage licenses, as documented in the post Thousands of New Yorkers Put a Ring on It . In August, Jacob Murphy shared photographs of a pop-up chapel ceremony in New York City’s Columbus Circle. talkaboutequality.wordpress.com July 9: South Sudan becomes the world’s newest nation after seceding from Sudan. Uganda-based photographer Will Boase was there to capture the celebration, which he blogged about in Happy Birthday South Sudan . themzungudiaries.wordpress.com July 20: WordPress.com blogger discovers a fake Apple store in Kunming, China. The author of birdabroad.wordpress.com published pictures of the store in a post titled Are You Listening, Steve Jobs? , which quickly caught the attention of major news outlets around the world. birdabroad.wordpress.com September 11: Americans remember 9/11, ten years later. In the post 3,652 Days Later , Dale Roe of Project 2,996 declared, “Take this day, not to remember mass murder, but to remember the 2,996 people who are loved and missed.” The project uses WordPress.com to organize tributes to the victims of 9/11. Amalie Flynn was just blocks away from the Twin Towers on 9/11. She started septembereleventh.wordpress.com on 9/11/2010 and posted every day last year. project2996.wordpress.com October: The Occupy Wall Street movement gains momentum. Terrell Starr visited New York’s Financial District to document the demonstration. Many Occupy movements like Occupy Oakland , Occupy London , Occupy Albany , and Occupy Together use the WordPress open source software or WordPress.com to power their web sites. hiddennewyorkers.com November 18: UC Davis campus police pepper spray nonviolent protestors, sparking outrage. The next day, Nathan Brown, an Assistant Professor at UC Davis, wrote an Open Letter to Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi , demanding that the school’s chancellor resign. bicyclebarricade.wordpress.com Will you be the next blogger to break or cover news live from the field? Download WordPress for your mobile device and you’ll always be prepared to share your perspective with the world! To make your posts easy for others to find, be sure to include relevant tags that indicate the city, venue, or event that you blog about.

Tagged as: city, design, egypt, howto, news, open-source, power, president, victims

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City turns costlier, house prices up by 30% since last September

by Paul Joseph November 25, 2011 Uncategorized

CHENNAI: Residential property rates have been going through the roof for months but new data shows that the spike for the quarter ending September was 30% more than the same period last year. Chennai’s central business district saw the highest price increases due to surging demand, according to NHB Residex, an RBI-supervised mechanism that tracks housing prices in 15 cities. However, prices

Tagged as: apartments, city, construction, copyright, economy, facebook, gadget, india property, indian, lottery, real estate, real estate india

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Dheeraj Jade Residences Wagholi Pune

by Paul Joseph November 23, 2011 Uncategorized

Dheeraj Jade Residences is the up-coming luxury class residential project of Dheeraj Realty located at Wagholi in Pune. The project is offering the choice of 1/2/2.5 BHK apartments covering an area ranging from 620 sq ft to 1090 sq ft. The price of magnificent apartments of Dheeraj Jade Residences Wagholi is starting from Rs. 19,53,000 onwards. Dheeraj Jade Residences is one spot where one can get dream homes which will cherish all the aspiration of living. Pune is one of the cities in India which has perfect blend of traditional and contemporary culture. In past few decades the city has emerged as one the leading hub of IT companies, MNCs, educational institutions for higher studies, and other leading business houses. Every year thousands of students and professional joins the city’s population to work and study in various companies and for higher studies. The professionals working in this area are highly paid and at the same time have busy schedule. They have not much time for making themselves busy in searching a good dream house. They prefer to purchase a readymade house instead of wasting their time in searching it. At the same time desire to live in the apartments which reflect their high status symbol. Pune people have cosmopolitan lifestyle in which they want peace and relaxation; Dheeraj Jade Residences Pune is will be the best choice which will satisfy all the needs of the residents of Pune. Dheeraj Jade Residences Pune is initiated by keeping in view the cash rich professionals of Pune. As we know these people are the rich class segments of society and mostly influenced by western culture. In view of this fact the project is initiated keeping all the ultra modern amenities at the door step of project. Dheeraj Jade Residences Wagholi is one of magnificent masterpiece developed by Dheeraj Realty. This residential project is full of all those amenities which will make the life of inhabitants easy and comfortable. Dheeraj Jade Residences Pune has all amenities, such as, swimming pool, kid’s play area, sports facility, gymnasium, multipurpose room, and many more to offer you and your family a healthy and graceful living. These are some World class amenities which is making this project a choice of everyone. Dheeraj Realty is known as one of the best name in the field of real estate development industry. The group was founded in 1978 by the team of highly experienced and enthusiastic professionals. Since, then this real estate company starving hard and creating its high quality masterpieces admired globally. The previous records of Dhreeej realty making its history glorified. The group has created very strong relationship with many happy families and always provided more than the expectation of its customers. They always give importance to their customer dreams and work hard for changing their dreams into reality. They are having a team of world class engineers, designers and architects who work dedicatedly for making Dheeraj one of the best real estate company across the world. With the help of their energetic team members they always give space to innovation and new thoughts. View More Detail …

Tagged as: apartments, australian, city, homes, india, indian, infrastructure, real estate, transportation

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Tata The Promont – Tata Group’s New Launch In Bangalore

by Paul Joseph November 21, 2011 Uncategorized

The Promont is an upcoming luxurious and world class designed residential project of Tata Housing located at Banashankari, Bangalore. The Promont is offering you the choice of 3 and 4 BHK and covering the area ranging from 2480 sq ft to 3205 sq ft. The price rate of the magnificent project is starting from 1.85cr to 2.39cr. The royal residential project is the result of world class architects, engineers and interior designers to suggest you most modern-day and hard-wearing design. The natural scenery of the residential area will please your heart. Each room is designed with a prominence on glass windows and least obstructions to intensify the sense of the city around you. It extends over 14 hectares on a hill overlooking the surrounding neighbourhood and the point of view of the city below, this masterpiece is carved into the mountains, resulting in high visibility throughout the development and 360 degrees views of the city and the surrounding hills. True to its height, offers stylish residences designed Promont projecting two-storey terraces, with gardens, ensuring design excellence in its functionality and appearance using innovative ways to make the best of its class. The Promont offers: • Four luxurious apartment towers that will offer 320 exclusive three- and four-bedroom lavish apartments and penthouses from 2,376sq ft to 6,410sq ft. • Double-height lobbies complemented by double-height cantilevered terraced gardens in each of the 320 residences. • 65 per cent open landscaped areas. • Luxuriously sprawled across three levels and 20,000sq ft, The Promont’s clubhouse offers recreation and relaxation like you have never imagined on top of an exclusive hill. World-class amenities, such as temperature-controlled indoor swimming pool and jacuzzi, an outdoor infinity edge outdoor pool and barbeque area that gives you panoramic views of Bengaluru below. • The clubhouse also offers a fully-equipped gymnasium, a squash court, golf simulation, a banquet hall, restaurant, lounge and bar, amongst other leisure facilities exclusive to its residents. This development offers breathtaking views of the legendary Bengaluru, seen by many as the merits of his incomparable serenity, tranquillity, the climate, the great view and privacy. View More Detail …

Tagged as: apartments, city, development, housing, indian, investment, japanese, sports

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Noida Extension Buyers Protest Peacefully; Submit memorandum to GNIDA

by Paul Joseph July 25, 2011

More than 2,500 home-buyers representing the Noida Extension Flat-Buyers Welfare Association (NEFBWA) held a huge peaceful protest and submitted a memorandum to the Chairman, Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) at its Camp Office, Noida, requesting him to safeguard their interest in the wake of the stalling of real estate projects in the troubled Noida Extension area as a fall-out of the recent court judgements. The NEFBWA’s rally which also created a huge traffic jam in the city began with the raising of slogans by the home buyers to the effect that they want their homes to be built instead of their invested money to be returned. They were of the opinion that they had put their hard-earned money in these projects only with an intention to move into their dream homes. And now they would not accept anything less than their proposed homes to be created and handed over to them. Speaking to Realty Plus, home buyers stated that they had faith and a sense of security in buying into these projects since they knew that these were already approved by the GNIDA. The Association members said, “We are all end-users and want the houses for our self-use. We are not investors or brokers. We have made arrangements for the payment of our houses by disposing off some of our existing properties, gold or other valuable possessions. We have also availed loans from banks/finance institutions or our employers. A large number of us are middle class government employees and so our interest should be positively taken care of by the government. ” Starting from the Gautama Buddha Statue at the Noida Entry Gate, the rally marched till Noida Sector-18 and ended at GNIDA’s Camp Office, Noida. According to the memo submitted, the Association has expressed their sympathy with the farmers, acknowledging the fact that injustice has been done to them as the farmers have their own genuine grievances which must be addressed. But at the same time, it is also equally important that the progress of development should not be put on hold. The memo states that there is huge increase in land prices in the NCR region in recent years because of growing urbanisation. In view of this, the government should ensure adequate availability of land to meet the acute shortage of affordable dwelling units. The memo further states, “The Association has already filed impleadment applications in the Allahabad High Court that the bonafide flat-buyers will suffer huge and irreparable losses on account of any hard decision with regard to the Noida Extension projects. In view of this, the Association has urged the Hon’ble Court that we must be given an opportunity to be heard before a decision is taken”.

Tagged as: allahabad, association, city, delhi, farmers, gautama-buddha, government, gurgaon, noida-sector-18, payment, real estate, real estate developers

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Mumbai Ranked as the Most Favoured Development Market in Asia Pacific Region

by Paul Joseph July 8, 2011

Mumbai is ranked third as the most promising investment market, and the first as the most favoured development market, in the recent Emerging Trends in Real Estate Asia Pacific 2011, a real estate forecast jointly published by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and Pricewaterhouse-Coopers (PwC). “Projections for Mumbai in 2011 look good, as the city’s investment ranking rises five spots to third,” the report states, adding that this city is “clearly the best performing and most active real estate market” . Development in Mumbai continues to be an area of interest, with the city ranking first in the 2011 results, up from sec ond in 2010. Oversupply continues to be a serious risk for the area, but respondents “don’t think many people are worried about real estate turning into a bubble again” . “In terms of investment, buying opportunities ‘ring out’ in the retail, apartment and industrial sectors,” the report adds. The report also notes that India’s GDP continues to grow and shows “no real signs of declining anytime soon” . Over the past 30 years, it says, the country has managed to sustain a GDP growth rate average of 10%. Projections for 2011 are 8.5%, and forecasts are for growth of between 9% and 10% by 2015. This is a significant move from the mid-6 % range found in the early 2000s. To support this economic expansion, there has been a large amount of growth in the working population of India. Also, the government continues to make progress in introducing reforms that have helped the country introduce new private equity to capital markets, create a new platform of employment, and inject capital into infrastructure programmes. Exports of both goods and services from this region continue to increase, marking more business interest abroad. Speaking of the region as a whole, the ULI/ PwC report also states that the “cloud has been lifted” from Asia Pacific real estate markets , with the fiscal outlook for most of the Asian countries more promising than that for Europe or the United States. “Many , if not most, Asian economies have rebounded to pre-crisis levels, and real estate markets, although mostly slower, are headed towards some semblance of normalcy,” said ULI Asia Pacific chairman C Y Leung.

Tagged as: asian, banking and finance, city, country, delhi, europe, government, pune, real estate, real estate developers, report, retail

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Phoenix Mills Planning to Set up Shopping Malls to Increase Presence in Metros

by Paul Joseph July 6, 2011

Mumbai-based Phoenix Mills is planning expansion across India by setting up shopping malls ‘Phoenix Market City’ in the major cities like Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai by March 2012. Recently, Phoenix Market City has opened in Pune with a total investment of Rs 700 crore spread over 30 lakh square feet area in Viman nagar. The company is expecting to generate a revenue of Rs 100 crore from the Pune-based mall. The development also boasts of one of the biggest multiplexes in the city. At present, the mall has 55 stores that have already started operations, while 155 stores have been handed over for fit outs and it has a capacity of over 300 stores to accommodate. The mall comprises a large courtyard, hyper market area, departmental, bookstore; electronics and a toy store. It also has community spaces with water bodies, public plazas, hospitality, retail, F&B and entertainment. Speaking on the development, Atul Ruia, managing director, Phoenix Mills Ltd, said, “Phoenix Market City, Pune is a significant step in building a blueprint for future Phoenix developments around the nation and allows us to leverage our expertise in real estate development. This lifestyle destination, a futuristic mixed-use led retail development format represents an important milestone in Phoenix Mill’s strategy to diversify in growing markets. This concept is driven by the growing observation that the Indian consumers today are looking for not only one-stop destination that offer high-end shopping, but also a place that offers a holistic lifestyle and leisure experience.” Phoenix is also planning to develop two five star hotels within the market city. According to the sources, it has received proposals to develop facilities but it will take some time depending upon the kind of response it will get in the future. The brand list includes Zara, Blu O, Oviesse, Orama, Boggi, Diesel, Jack & Jones/Only, Reliance Trends, Parcos, FCUK, Lacoste, Aroma Thai, Fehrenheit, PVR among others.

Tagged as: bangalore, chennai, city, consumers-today, development, from-the-pune, india, indian, kolkata, market, phoenix-market, phoenix-mill, reliance-trends

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Hill Stations Emerging as Attractive Real Estate Destination

by Paul Joseph July 5, 2011

With family income on the rise, hill stations in India are increasingly becoming attractive real estate destinations for more and more Indians, according to a survey. While some want an embode in hill stations as only a holiday home, some others want it as a second home they can drop in any time they please. This appetite, though still niche, is catching up fast amongst Indian homebuyers. The survey, conducted on the website Makaan.com from June one to June 23 this year, saw participation from over 4,800 respondents nationally, with the majority of them belonging to the age group of 26-35 years of age. According to the survey findings, Indian hill stations are emerging as probable residential options. Gone are the days when owning a house in the hills was mostly looked from an investment point of view; today a large majority of home buyers are ready to move into the hills and are looking at these destinations for residing purpose in the near future. With 37 per cent, majority of survey takers expressed that for them the purpose of buying a house in the hills was clearly self use, be it for now or for future. Another 29 per cent respondents want to look at such options as a holiday destination or weekend getaway. Interestingly, only 21 per cent want to buy real estate in the hilly areas as probable investment options. The remaining 14 per cent is made up of those who want to beat the city life and plan to settle post-retirement in these areas.

Tagged as: appetite, beat-the-city, city, delhi, faridabad, hills, india, large-majority, majority, noida, per-cent, real estate, real estate developers, real estate india, real estate trends

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Akshaya Homes to enter Karnataka, Kerala by 2015

by Paul Joseph July 1, 2011 Uncategorized

In Coimbatore, Chennai-based real estate developer Akshaya Homes planned to enter Karnataka and Kerala real estate market by 2015, a top company official remarked nowadays. The company would as well have pan-India presence in a different five years, Chairman and CEO of Akshaya Homes T Chitty Babu announced reporters here. He was conversing after launching Akshaya Homes’ 11-storey residential project, claimed to be the first ’4-star’ rated residences property , in the city. The ‘Orbit 11′ houses 30 graspingly crafted three- bedroom, hall, kitchen residences, costing Rs.1.75 crore beyond for three diverse kinds of apartments, rated at Rs 7,5000 / square feet, he uttered. He again announced the project had been offered ’4star’ rating by CRISIL. The project, 149th from Akshaya, costing regarding Rs.200 crore leaving out the land, would be completed within 21 months, he whispered. Akshaya designed to build up projects worth Rs.200 crore in the next three years in Coimbatore, luxury residences in Tiruchirapalli for the duration of this fiscal and Salem and Madurai subsequently financial year, he adjoined.

Tagged as: akshaya-homes, chennai, chennai-based, city, coimbatore, different-five, duration, karnataka, kerala, pan-india, real estate, residential projects

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Gurgaon Realty Prices rising

by Paul Joseph June 28, 2011

Gurgaon Property prices had been increasing for more than a few years before the current worldwide financial crisis. Actually there had been a vast augment in property prices. Decades before, Gurgaon was a modest identified Haryana village lies near the boundary of Delhi. With India’s financial revival after the financial liberalization, foreign direct investment in the area is a model destination. Companies arrive to India to open store in New Delhi NCR Gurgaon establish in a perfect location. This feature has a straight impact on real estate prices growing Gurgaon property . There is one more significant aspect contributing to expanding property prices Gurgaon. Together with the presence of corporate offices, a number of supporting institutions that serve the needs of the immigrant population emerged in the region. Public schools, unmatched business schools, IT colleges, engineering and institutes have appeared in the area. As well, finest brands of hotel, BPO, hospitals, shopping centers, cinemas and additional commercial organizations found their method into the city. Sensing the increasing commercial significance of the area, the chief accommodation companies like Ansal, DLF, Parsvanath and so forth began operations in quite a lot of locations in the city. This has unavoidably contributed to the important augment in possessions prices Gurgaon real estate . Rising real estate prices Gurgaon , nevertheless, before a current turn down in the sweep of worldwide financial recession. Supposedly, the fall, even though declining, carries on.

Tagged as: area, been-increasing, city, corporate offices, dlf, gurgaon real estate, impact-on-real, increasing, india, parsvanath, real estate, straight-impact, the-increasing

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