Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Indian
Construction Costs
A Biannual Review
January 2021

Gleeds India I&A 1

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Note from the Managing Director

The year 2020 will go down in history as one that has significantly altered the way humans have
lived, worked and travelled. Throughout the pandemic, the world has shown resilience and,
with much determination, hard work and adjustment have slowly recommenced retracting
the effect of lockdowns and the declining global economy. Though world economists had
predicted a recession much deeper than the likes of World War II, there has been positivity
and optimism while entering into the year 2021 on the back of a vaccine rollout. With the
recovered stock market and reduction in unemployment, it appears that steps taken by
the local and central governments through fiscal stimulus across the world are positively
contributing to the gradual rise of all sectors and bringing the economy back on track.

Particularly for the Indian economy, as a consequence of a sudden but needed lockdown, we
have witnessed the supply chain disruption and distressing migration of workforce leading to
delays in commitments and drops in orders fulfilment. However, with the explosion of digital
technology and its innovative adaption, organisations have succeeded in overcoming the
initial shock and seems to have fully adapted to the best of its ability the ‘new normal’ work
style.

While the Indian economy is still trying to rebalance itself following the pandemic as well
subdued activities since 2018, a more than average monsoon, festive seasons, pent
up demands were green shoots for the Indian economy. This buoyant rebound has
brought about the highest tax collection and increased hiring rate across the industry
which will eventually lead to improvement across the nation aiming to achieve as close to
pre-COVID-19 times normalcy as possible.

Following the first Biannual publication on construction costs in July 2020, Gleeds India is
excited to bring forward the second biannual publication where we revisit the cost trends,
examine the Indian economy, review the status of the construction industry and provide
insights on the construction sectors, allowing our readers a summary of the past year.

Gleeds India Insights & Analytics team have been constantly monitoring the cost changes, the
global geopolitical issues and market dynamics for key material and labour. Whilst the first half
of the year 2020, showed immense uncertainty for the labour, the second half has signalled a
surge in material prices. The full impact of these constant fluctuations on construction costs
along with post-pandemic design approaches are yet to be fully understood by the sector and
can only be comprehended in times to come.

I sincerely hope that this publication will be insightful and adds value to your outlook of the
industry allowing its stakeholders to make informed and timely decisions.

Ben Huskisson, MRICS.

Managing Director

Gleeds India I&A 2

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Contents

2020 Bygone..........................................................................................................5

H2 2020 economic overview...................................................................................6

  Gross Domestic Product (GDP)...........................................................................6
 Employment........................................................................................................7
 Inflation...............................................................................................................7
  WPI and CPI........................................................................................................8
  USD to INR.........................................................................................................9
 PMI.....................................................................................................................9
Key price trends......................................................................................................10
 Steel...................................................................................................................11
  Crude oil.............................................................................................................13
 Diesel..................................................................................................................14
 Cement...............................................................................................................14
  Aluminium and copper.........................................................................................15
 PVC....................................................................................................................16
  Material prices.....................................................................................................17
Labour....................................................................................................................19

Construction sector outlook....................................................................................22

Sector wise Costs...................................................................................................27

Cost indices............................................................................................................31

The path of reformation...........................................................................................34

The road ahead......................................................................................................36

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 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Economic outlook

Marriott Hotels & Resorts

Gleeds India I&A 4


2020 Bygone
In 2020, the world stepped into a turmoil of uncertainty
with no view on how the pandemic would shape up, but in
the year 2021, with recovery efforts and the rolling out of
the vaccination globally, there is a renewed optimism that
will contribute to a sense of stability in world economic
affairs.
As seen globally the total number of officially reported
cases for COVID-19 has touched to 90.6 million resulting
in an unfortunate 1.9 million deaths. With new variants
being reported in the UK and South Africa towards the end
of last year, there have been instances of further stringent
lockdown which will affect regional economies. In India, the
reported cases of 10.5 million resulted in an unfortunate
150 thousand lives lost.
India’s economy had grown at 4.2% in 2019-20 but
entered a recessionary phase with two successive
quarters of sharp contraction triggered by the COVID-19
national lockdowns beginning March 2020. As per World
Bank, Indian informal sector, which accounts for four-fifths
of employment, has been subject to severe income losses
during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Following a 23.9% collapse in the economy between April
to June 2020 period, the GDP fell by 7.5% in the second
quarter leading to a real GDP contraction of 15.7% in the
first half of 2020-21. The second half of the year is expected
to record near-zero growth or a mere 0.1% contraction.
Based on an uptick in various indicators in the last few
months, several agencies have upgraded their estimates
of India’s economy, with the Reserve Bank of India recently
Gleeds India I&A
Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021
projecting a 7.5% contraction in the year compared to its
earlier estimate of a 9.5% decline.
The services sector accounts for 54.77% of total India’s
GVA of 183.43 lakh crore Indian rupees. With GVA of
Rs. 50.40 lakh crore, the Industry sector contributes
27.48%. The agricultural industry is currently seen as a
ray of hope for the Indian economy with a healthy growth
of 2.9% year-on-year as reported by the Department of
Economic Affairs. Apart from this, Electricity, Gas, Water
Supply & Other Utility services (2.7%) also has seen growth
during this period.
Indian unemployment rates have dipped since the sudden
rise in April 2020. Most trades have resumed work by
Unlock 6 (November 1- November 30 2020) such as
airlines with restricted flights, hospitality with new safety
norms, retail with additional safety measures, cinemas
with restricted seating capacity and partial reopening of
schools, gradually restoring the economy.
Due to the growth and festive season in September and
December 2020, India has witnessed a V-shape recovery.
The country is now trying to get back on its feet and
continue towards normality with the ongoing challenge of
infection and other associated consequences.
While the rest of the world is also recovering, China is the
only country that has surpassed the others to move into
the positive since the mid of last year. The forecasts now
predict that in a decade China is likely to emerge as the
world’s largest economy.
Narsi Monji Institute of Management Studies
5
 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

H2 2020 Economic overview

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

While the GDP predictions for the year 2020 indicated a
lacklustre Indian economy, more stability, vaccine roll-outs
and the expectation of another stimulus in the Indian Union
Budget, the GDP is likely to grow with optimism that it will
cross the zero mark towards positivity in Q32021.
Recently, Reserve Bank India has revised its GDP to -7.5%
from its previous -9.5% for the year ending in March 2021.
Many organizations such as Asian Development Bank,
Fitch, Goldman Sachs, Moody’s and State Bank of India
have now updated GDP since their September 2020
forecasts, now predicting more positive GDP growth for
2021. While the International Monetary Fund and the
United Bank of Switzerland have increased their negative
projection, the World Bank has retained the negative
contraction at 9.6%.
Fitch has indicated an expectation of a 11% expansion
in GDP for the FY22 and note that India had lost its
momentum prior to the pandemic, with a ten year low of
4.2% in 2019, a reduction of 1.9% from the previous year.
The World Bank expect a 5.4% increase in the FY22, from
its current 9.6% contraction in the present fiscal. There are
many risk factors involved which would affect the growth
such as capital flows, commodity prices, inflation and the
global recession. The present growth predictions however
are quite impressive for India, with the global growth
prediction of 5.2% by IMF for FY22.

Graph 1: GDP forecasts for year 2020 - 2021

RBI ADB Fitch World Bank IMF GS UBS Moody’s SBI

-4.5%

-7.4%
-7.5%

-8.0%

-8.6%
-9.0%
-9.5%

-9.4%

-9.6%
-9.6%

-10.3%

-10.3%
-10.5%

-10.5%

-10.6%

-10.9%
-11.5%
-14.8%

Sep-20 Jan-21

Source: Media reports

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 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Employment

Unemployment hit an alarming rate of 23.52% in April absorption is this sector is lower compared to the other
2020 at lockdown, which reached a reasonable 9.15% in months.
December 2020.
The COVID-19 situation has reshaped the job market. There
September, October and November 2020 witnessed a dip have been job losses across sectors previously booming,
in the rate of unemployment nationwide, more in line with and a rise now in jobs for warehousing, delivery services,
the preceding year while in December the rate increased, grocery stores and other smaller jobs. Jobs are being
the highest recorded after the commencement of recovery reallocated and a higher and multi-skill set is being sought
in June 2020. This is possibly due to the surge in labour
after. The overall job market is also expected to react to
numbers looking for work, which the industries including
‘work from home’ culture and subsequent renegotiation of
the construction sector could not absorb. Labour spill-over
is usually absorbed by the farming sector, but December employment contracts.

Graph 2: Unemployment rate in India

25 23.50

21.70
20
Value in %

15

10.20
10 9.10
7.90 8.20 8.10 7.60 7.80 8.30
7.20 7.30 8.80
7.00
6.90 6.70 7.00 7.30 7.10 7.20 7.20 7.40 6.70 6.50
5

0
Dec-19

Dec-20
Sep-19

Sep-20
Jan-19

Jan-20
Aug-19

Aug-20
Feb-19

Feb-20
Jun-19

Jun-20
Jul-19

Jul-20
Oct-19

Oct-20
Apr-19

Nov-19

Apr-20

Nov-20
May-19

May-20
Mar-19

Mar-20

Source: CMIE

Inflation Graph 3: Inflation

7.00% 6.67%

The annual inflation rate in India for 6.00%

2020 was at 3.4% per Global Economy 5.26%

(IMF) which is more closer to its 2018 5.00%

4.59%
value of 2.47% as against a 6.67% in 3.97%
4.00%
the year 2019. Inflation for the year
2021 is projected to be 3.97% and 3.57%
3.40%
3.00%
3.94% in 2024.
2.47%
2.00%

1.00%
Y2015 Y2016 Y2017 Y2018 Y2019 Y2020 Y2021

Source: Globaleconomy.com (IMF). Note 2021 is a projected value

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 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

WPI and CPI

Both wholesale price index (WPI) and 126 Graph 4: WPI Indices
124.2 124.5
the consumer price index (CPI) are the 123.8
124
change in the price of various goods 126 122.9
or services in the economy, where 121.7 124.2 124.5
122 123.8
124 121
the wholesale price index measures 120.4 122.9
the percentage change in the price 120 119.2 119.3 121.7
122
in wholesale index, while consumer 121
120.4
price index measures the percentage 118 117.5
120 119.2 119.3
change in the price in retail market and
hence it is more useful for consumers 116 117.5
118
rather than businessman.
114
116 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
WPI: The base value of 100 is
considered for the year 2011-2012. 114
Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
While the primary articles such as
non-food articles increases in Source: India Budget Economic survey Report, The Government of India.
December, mineral oils, coals
and manufactured products have
increased. The dips in WPI and
subsequent turn around is also
resultant of increase in commodity
price increases across the board.

CPI: The December CPI (retail Graph 5: CPI

inflation) eased to about 4.59% from a
6.93% in November mainly due to the 8.00%
7.61%
easing of food prices. This brought the 7.50% 7.34%
7.22%
CPI within the RBI’s mandated retail 8.00%
7.00% 6.93%
inflation range of 2% to 6%, which is 6.73% 7.61%
7.50% 7.34%
welcome after the inflation for the past 7.22%
6.50% 6.69%
6.93%
7 months has been above the upper 7.00%
6.27% 6.73%
6.00% 6.23%
limit. 6.50% 5.91% 6.69%
5.50%
6.00% 6.27% 6.23%
The twin peaks of inflation spikes of
5.00% 5.91%
CPI indicate increases on the costs 5.50%
during the middle of the lock down 4.50%
4.59%
5.00%
and reduced supply and resultant 4.00%
increase of the prices, the increase in 4.50% Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
4.59%
November points towards increased
4.00%
consumptions during festival season Source: Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. December is a provisional value.
Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
in India.

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 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

$ USD to INR

The Rupee averaged to ₹74.13 with Graph 6: USD to INR trendline

April 2020 the highest at ₹76.97
per USD and lowest of ₹70. 72 per 80
USD in January 2020. The month of
74.13
December averaged to a ₹73.66 per 75
USD. 70.39
70 68.40
67.17
The USD has been on the rise steadily. 65.10
64.12
This affects prices of Indian imports 65
INR

such as mineral fuels, electrical

machinery and equipment, organic 60
chemicals, plastics and plastic
articles, iron steel and fertilizers. The 55
construction sector majorly depends
on oil for its fuel for manufacture of
50
raw materials utilized in construction, Y2015 Y2016 Y2017 Y2018 Y2019 Y2020
plastics, iron and steel and the
weakening of the rupee, translates to Source: XE currency charts.
rise in construction input costs.

PMI

IHS Markit India Manufacturing Graph 7: PMI trendline

Purchasing Managers Index (PMI)
rises to 56.4 in December 2020 54.9
55
slightly higher than the previous
month of 56.3 and above the 50.0
threshold. This indicated that there
is a slight improvement in business 54 53.7
53.6
and the factories have increased their
production. Reports also indicate that
53.0
the rise in input buying in turn helped 53
firms to lift their pre-production
inventories. Stocks of purchases
grew sharply and at the quickest
52
pace since March 2011. Though Dec-17 Dec-18 Dec-19 Dec-20
some firms believe that there will be
a lasting impact on the COVID-19 in
the coming year, there is still optimism
Source: The global economy (Markit Economics)
that output will increase.

Gleeds India I&A 9

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Key price trends

Raymond Realty, Mumbai

Gleeds India I&A 10

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Key price trends

The price trends for the most used material in the industry are set to change as a consequence of the Covid-19
pandemic. Commonly used material price trends for are demonstrated below:

Steel

Primary Steel prices in the past month risen exponentially
to nearly 2000-2500 per metric ton.
The steel association of India have requested the
Government to temporarily ban iron ore exports for at
least six months to ease the domestic supply and wait
for the situation to stabilise. China is the largest steel
producer in the world and import iron ire from countries
like Australia and Brazil to meet their production demand.
They have been stockpiling ever since the economy has
started picking up. With shutting down on mines in Brazil
due to landslides and tropical cyclones in Australia, China
have turned to India for its iron ore supply. 95% of India’s
exports of iron ore went to China in 3Q2020, possibly
pressurising domestic demand, resulting in price increase
3 times more than before. This sudden spike in rates
adversely affect contractors and Developers alike as Steel
reflects to roughly 12-15% of the construction costs.

Graph 8: Primary steel price trends

66.36

55.20 62.83
46.90
45.90
55.50 65.84
42.00 46.32
46.50
34.60 56.00
38.80 47.80 66.47
38.60 46.70
41.70
35.50 45.90 55.60 47.20
41.60 65.15
35.40 48.31
45.70 54.30
34.20 42.10
65.26
46.50 55.50 46.32
37.50 38.80

Dec-15 Dec-16 Dec-17 Dec-18 Dec-19 Dec-20

Mumbai (INR/Kg) Delhi (INR/Kg) Chennai (INR/Kg)

Bangalore (INR/Kg) Pune (INR/Kg) Hyderabad (INR/Kg)

Sources: Sail. Note: All year prices are averaged and in INR, and Sail’s last updated rates are in December 2020.
All prices include GST

The price increase from the last month of 3Q2020 to 4Q2020 is circa 30% which is huge for the primary steel
component in construction.

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 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Graph 9: Steel prices at the end of each quarter city-wise

Mumbai
Mumbai Pune Pune
Mumbai
Mumbai 65.26 65.26 70 Pune Pune 62.83 62.83
70 70 70
Mumbai 65.26 65.26 Pune 62.83 62.83
70
60 70
60
53.31 53.31 53.31 Mumbai 53.31 70
60 70
60 50.74 50.74
49.89 49.89 50.15 50.15 Pune
48.68 48.68
65.26 62.83
70
60
50 60
50
53.31 53.31 53.31 53.31 70
60
50 60
50 50.74 50.74 62.83
70 49.89 49.89 65.26 50.15
70 50.15 48.68 48.68
60
50
40 50
40
53.31 53.31 60
50
40 50
40 50.74
60 49.89 50.15
60 48.68
0 53.31 020 53.31
20 r-2
0 0 20 0 0 50.15 020 50.74
20 r-2
0 0 20 0
50
40 40h- 2
hn-e
2- e - e e r-2 er-
49.89
e r-2 50
40 40
h - 2
hn-e
2- e - e e r-2 er-
48.68
e r-2
50 c c n 0b 20 mb m20 20 m 20b b c50 c n 0b 20 mb m20 20 m 20b b
ar 0 aJru 00 Ju e-m ar 0 aJru 00 Ju e-m
40 M h-2 M h-e2-2 p t 2 er- pte ceer- er- ce er-
e 40 M h-2 M h-e2-2 p t 2 er- pte ceer- er- ce er-
e
c cn n b e e c40 cn n b e e
40
ar 0 aJru 0 SJeu em S-2e0 em Db mb -D20 mb ar 0 aJru 0 SJeu em S-2e0 em Db mb -D20 mb
M h-2 M e2-02 t 0 r t e 20 r ce 0 M h-2 M e2-02 t 0 r t e 20 r ce 0
r c u hn- 2 e
epe- b Sep De er-mb De
c e
e r-2 r c u hn- 2 e
epe- b Sep De er-mb De
c e
e r-2
a Jc S n m be b a Jc S n m be b
M ar Jupte emec em M ar Jupte emec em
M e t
p D c M e t
p D c
S e S e
Se D Se D
Banglore
Banglore Delhi Delhi
70 70 Banglore
Banglore 65.84 65.84 70 70 Delhi Delhi 65.15 65.15
70
60 70
60 Banglore 65.84 65.84 70
60 70
60
53.80 53.80 Delhi53.80
53.80 65.15 65.15
52.20 52.20 52.20 52.20 Banglore
50.90 50.90 Delhi
51.05 51.05
70
60
50 60
50 65.84 70
60
50 60
50
53.80 53.8053.80 53.80 65.15
52.20
70 52.2052.20 52.20 50.90 50.90 65.84 70 51.05 51.05 65.15
60
50
40 50
40 60
50
40 50
40
53.80 53.80
52.20
60 52.20 50.90 60 53.800 53.8051.05
52.200 20 52.20 0 0 20 0 0 0 20 0
50
40 40
- 2 0
- 2 - - 20 r-2 50.90
r-2 er- r-2 50
40 40- 2 0
- 2 02
- - 20r-2 51.05
r-2 er- r-2
c h50 h
c n e e e
n b0 0 b b0 0 b 0 e e c h
50 h
c n e e
nb e e
b b b e
ar 0 ar Ju 0 0 Ju em 2 m m2 2 m 2 ar 0 ar Ju 0 0 Ju m 0 20 m m20 20 m 20
40 M h-2 M h-2e-2 p t e-2 er- pte ceer- er- ce er- 40 M h-2 M h-2 e-2 pte e-2er- pte ceer- er- ce er-
c 40 c n n b eb b e b c 40 c n nb eb b e b
ar 0 ar Ju -20 SJeu em S-2e0 eDm em 0 -D20 em ar 0 ar Ju -20Se Juem S-2e0 eDm em 0 -D20 em
M h-2 M 0 t 0 r t r 0 M h-2 M 0 t 0r t r 0
r c hu-n2e e p -2be ep ec r-2be ec
e D e D e r-2 r c h -2ne ep eb-2e ep Decer-2be Dec er-2
u
a cJ S nem S bem b a cJ S enm S b em b
M ar Jupt emec em M ar u
pJt emec em
M e t
pD c M e pDt c
S e S e
Se D Se D
Chennai
Chennai
Hyderabad
Hyderabad
Chennai
Chennai 66.47 66.47
70 70 Hyderabad
Hyderabad 66.36 66.36 70 70

66.36 66.36 70
60 70
60
Chennai 66.47 66.47
70
60 70
60 Hyderabad 52.70 52.70 Chennai
52.70 52.70
50.49 50.49 52.70 Hyderabad
52.70 51.05 51.05 51.37 51.37
66.47
66.36 70
60 60 66.47
70
60
50 60
50 66.36 50 70
50
52.70 52.70
52.70 52.70
70
50.49 50.49 52.70 52.70 51.05 51.05 51.37 51.37
60 60
50 50
50
40 50
40 52.70 40 52.70
60
40 52.70 51.37
60
50.49 52.70 51.05 52.70 52.70 0 0 20
51.37 0
0 -20 51.050 20 0 0 2-020 20 r-2
50
40 40 2 0 50.49
2 0 20
- - 2 r-2 er- r-2 50
40 40- 2 - - r-2 er- r-2
h-
50 h- ne n e ber e e c h
50 cnh e e
n b e e
b b b e
c c
ar 0 ar Ju 0 0 Ju em 0 20 mb m20 20 m 20 b b ar 0 aJru 020 Ju em-20 r-20 em er-m20 r-20 em r-20
40 M h-2 M h-2 e-2 t e-2 er- pte ceer- er- ce er- 40 M h-2 M hn-e2- pnt e e t c
p eb b 0e be
e e c
p c c
c40 c n n b
ar 0 ar Ju -20 SJeu em S-2e0 eDm em 0 -D20 em
eb b e b ar 40 0 aJru 20 SeJu emb S-2e0 em D m D2 m
M h-2 M 0e t 0 r t c 2 er c 0 M h- M e2-02 t 20er pt ce-20 er- ce -2
0
c 2
-un 2 e
ep e- b Sep De emr-b De r-2 c n- p -
Se neemb Se Dbeem D
e r b e er
a r cJh S nm be b e ar Jrcuh b
M ar Jupte em
M a Jput emec em
emec M pt D
M
S e p t D e c Se e ec
Se D S D

Source: SAIL. To note the values from April 2020 to September 2020 has been removed from the website. Values noted above are
as published in the given month at the time.
Prices include GST

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 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Crude oil

Crude oil has escalated in the recent Graph 10: Crude oil prices yearly vs December
past hitting an all-time high of nearly $50
per barrel on the last day of December

69.17
75

67.31
2020, which is inflating costs of raw

65.13
70

64.37
materials used in the manufacturing
65
of materials like cement, paints, glass,

57.36
54.62
plastics, PVC pipes and rubber towards 60

53.31
50.75

49.99
the tail end of the year. In the month of 55

46.59
46.59

46.59
April 2020, the crude was priced at $18 50

41.76
per barrel, a drastic reduction in prices 45 38.01
to sell off the existing production, in a
40
no demand scenario. This forced global
35
oil producers to moderate production
in the months following to avoid further 30
Y2015 Y2016 Y2017 Y2018 Y2019 Y2020 Y2021
losses, which disproportioned supply
Avg Yearly Price (USD/Barrel) Price in December (USD/Barrel)
and demand leading to low supply and
an escalated demand worldwide upon Source: Country Economy. Y2021 provisional as projected by Knoema.
economy restart, resulting in the price December 2021 assumed same as average price.
spikes.

While the global prices had softened

in 2020 due to lack of demand
and reduced production, In India,
Graph 11: Trendline crude oil prices and
there has been an increase in direct
 diesel prices in Bangalore
government taxation which resulted in
a minimum of 15 Rs per Liter on Diesel.
90
This increased taxation was towards 78.27
80
Governmental efforts to increase the 70.26
70 63.17
revenue in the light of the slow down 58.40 59.23
60
and reduced tax collection. 49.29
50
40
Whilst comparing the prices for Diesel 30.13
30 25.99 25.52 23.16
22.74
in Bangalore against the crude oil 15.89
20
prices for the month of December of
10
Year 2015 to 2020, prices of Diesel
0
have increased in tandem with prices Dec-15 Dec-16 Dec-17 Dec-18 Dec-19 Dec-20
of Oil. However, with the supply
Diesel (INR/Ltr) Crude Oil (INR/Ltr)
demand disruption in December
2020, the prices of diesel have Source: Country economy data. Prices are as on the month of December
increased more than the natural trend for the corresponding year.

from the price of Crude.

Gleeds India I&A 13

74.87
 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Diesel Graph 12: Diesel price trendline city-wise

74.87
The resultant cost increase in 73.18 72.32
the past month of Crude oil has 72.25
61.86 68.04
57.84 68.58
increased the domestic retail pricing 53.12 72.65
57.38
of Diseal and Petrol. As International 55.35 69.87 68.50
51.55
crude price is expected to rise in 57.24
59.51 73.53
53.64 70.38 70.13
coming months due to stabilization 59.23
50.01 54.55 70.03
of demand, unless the Government 66.57 66.44
53.24 57.12
of India and state governments 47.79 73.94
59.92 70.64 69.63
reduces the tax levies, these prices 54.56 59.02
will be expected to increase for short 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
to medium term.
Mumbai (Rs./Ltr) Delhi (Rs./Ltr) Chennai (Rs./Ltr)
Pune (Rs./Ltr) Banglore (Rs./Ltr) Hyderabad (Rs./Ltr)

Source: My petrol price. Average price in INR per year

Cement Graph 13: Cement trendline in Mumbai

310
In 2019, even with the rise in demand
290 292
and highest production level, the
prices were seen increasing. The 270
prices in 2020 fluctuated based on
the circumstances, with rates going 250
255
high after lockdown due to supply 247
230
and availability issues and in recent 231
224 225
months again has been increased 210

leading to Government of India 190

threatening to put a price regulator for
the sector indicating cartelization. 170

150
Y2015 Y2016 Y2017 Y2018 Y2019 Y2020

Source: Gleeds Internal Data (Mumbai). Prices are in Rs/Bag and exclude GST.

Virtuous Retail, Chennai

Gleeds India I&A 14

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Aluminium and copper

The price of Aluminium has been on the rise in December Construction components are affected by these price
climbing to a high of $2,017/ton during the month, fluctuations both directly and indirectly
following the closure of many plants in China. Some
industries like the automobile have increased their product
Table 1: Overview of aluminium and copper
prices following this increase in prices. All which will result
construction cost dependants
in increased input costs for manufactures in the coming
months. The 25% price increase from the 1Q2020 to
the 4Q2020 is steep, creating turbulence in construction
Metal Construction component affected
costs of aluminium associated works.

•  F
 açade elements such as Aluminium
Copper has risen to a high of $7,755/ton in the month composite panels
of December from an otherwise lower range of $5,178/ •  Window and door frames
ton in 1Q2020. This follows on from the strike in Chile, Aluminium •  Cables
the world’s largest copper miner. The prices however have •  Roofing
not subsided following a truce between the miners and •  Ducting
the organisation, which maybe possible after a full-fledged •  Parts of main equipment
production.
•  Electrical wires
A 15% increase in the price of copper and aluminium at the Copper •  Plumbing pipes
end of the last quarter from the 3Q2020, is a large increase •  Fasteners
for a single quarter.

Graph 14: Aluminium and copper trendline (yearly)

7000
6209.25 6054.13
6000 5413.75 6549.00
6168.59
5000
5010.38 Y2020 prices
4000 noted in
graph 15
3000
2050.00 1797.63
2000 1630.50
2022.13
1000 1619.38 1701.76

0
Y2015 Y2016 Y2017 Y2018 Y2019 Y2020

Aluminium USD/T Copper USD/T

Gleeds India I&A 15

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Graph 15: Aluminium and copper trendline Y2020

10000

8000 7063.43
6353.76 6712.41
6049.20
5178.68 5233.82
6000 6702.77
6496.70
5686.45 5742.39
4000 5048.25
1771.73 1459.79 1639.35 1745.34 1932.12
1611.14
2000
1685.85 1457.15 1564.02 1733.90 1802.82 2017.90
0

0
20

20

0
20

20

0
20
0

l-2
r-2

-2
-2

-2
-2
n-

n-
b-

p-
g-

ct
ar

ov
ay

Ju
Ap
Ja

Ju
Fe

Se
Au

O
M

N
M

Aluminium Prices USD/T Copper Prices USD/T

Source: London metal exchange

Prices noted are in USD and are averaged for the year.
Note: Price does not account for the impact of the Covid-19.

PVC

India’s PVC imports have been low since June 2020 and
the purchasing volumes have considerably reduced. This in
turn has made manufacturers reduce their production rate
pushing the cost high, leaving end users stumped with high
prices. Prices have nearly doubled since the last year. Plastic
manufacturers and processors have urged the Government to
ease raw material imports and stop imposing barriers such as
anti-dumping duty and mandatory BIS standards as demand
for several polymers exceed domestic production. They are also
seeking a ban on exports till the domestic demand is eased.
The plastics industry also suspect that the petrochemical
industry is boosting prices at regular intervals before releasing
supplied for domestic usage.

Graph 16: PVC trendline for Mumbai

140
115
120

100
74 79
80 70 73
62
60

40

20

0
Dec-15 Dec-16 Dec-17 Dec-18 Dec-19 Dec-20

Source: Plastemart. Prices in INR/Kg.

Gleeds India I&A 16

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Material prices

Palladium, Ahmedabad

Gleeds India I&A 17

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Material prices

Table 2: Material prices city-wise

Description UoM Mumbai Delhi Bengaluru Hyderabad Chennai Pune

Cement

Grade 53 INR/MT 7035 6965 6800 6700 6800 6300

Steel
Reinforcement INR/MT 51,000 53,000 51,300 51,600 51,300 51,000
Structural Steel INR/MT 59100 59,000 59,000 59,500 59,500 58,000
Clear Glass
6mm INR /Sqft 65 to 70 65 to 70 80 to 90 60 to 70 65 to 75 65 to 70
8mm INR /Sqft 80 to 90 80 to 90 90 to 125 80 to 90 85 to 95 80 to 90
Stone
Granite INR/ Sqft 150 to 250 120 to 250 90 to 250 90 to 250 115 to 250 115 to 250
Marble INR/ Sqft 220 to 500 200 to 500 180 to 500 175 to 500 150 to 500 180 to 500
Makrana INR/ Sqft 250 to 1000 250 to 1000 250 to 1000 250 to 1000 250 to 1000 250 to 1000
Kota INR/ Sqft 40 to 50 30 to 40 40 to 50 40 to 50 40 to 50 30 to 40
Cuddappa INR/ Sqft 20 to 25 20 to 25 15 to 25 15 to 25 20 to 25 15 to 25
Wood
Salwood INR/ cuft 1,750 1,650 1,400 1,600 1,400 1,400
Plywood
INR/ sqft 65 to 80 65 to 80 65 to 70 65 to 70 60 to 65 60 to 70
12mm thick
Paints
3,000 to 3,100 to 3,300 to 3,200 to
Emulsion INR /20 ltr 3,200 to 3,500 3,200 to 3,400
3,300 3,500 3,500 3,400
Metals
Aluminium INR/Kg 190 190 190 190 190 190
Stainless Steel INR/Kg 220 220 200 220 210 200
Plumbing
GI Pipes - 50mm
to 100mm C class INR/mtr 300 to 800 320 to 729 355 to 807 355 to 807 355 to 807 300 to 800
heavy
upvc - 32 -
INR/mtr 50 to 500 63 to 450 64 to 446 64 to 446 64 to 446 50 to 500
100mm
CPVC - 50 to
INR/mtr 600 to 3000 672 to 3180 660 to 3119 660 to 3119 660 to 3119 600 to 3000
100mm SDR 11
CI - 100 to 150
INR/mtr 600 to 1200 714 to 1742 778 to 1900 778 to 1900 778 to 1900 600 to 1300
mm single socket

Source: As per Gleeds’ database in the month of December 2020 unless noted otherwise. All prices exclude GST.
All prices are supply prices and a guidance only. Transportation, and any other abnormals are not included.

Gleeds India I&A 18

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Labour rate trends

Gleeds India I&A 19

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Labour rate trends

The migrant labour exodus caused an alarm across
many industries including the construction industry.
It remained handicapped till the return of labour slowly
in search of work. Sites now seem to be running at near
full labour capacity as per our internal data, however, the
vacuum before the return had spiked up the costs, with
contractors doing all they could to get labour to return.
The Government of Maharashtra, rationalised labour costs
to control the sudden spike while other states have been
paying the labour proportional to demand.
The productivity of labour has reduced from the
pre-COVID times, considering the social distancing norm,
the long periods of quarantine in case of infections and the
reduced number of workforces allowed on site in a given
period of time within a set space. These adaptations have
forced the industry to relook at its programme timelines
and schedules.
The irreversible change in the entire ordeal was the
enhancement of labour facilities, logistics, health insurance
and PPE. This has impacted preliminary and HSE costs
but considering a competitive market this is seen to be
absorbed to some extent by contractor in their overhead
and profit to stay competitive in a subdued market.

Note: All rates as on December of each corresponding year.

Graph 17: Labour rate trends

1. Mumbai: 2.  New Delhi:

1 1 2 2

573 573 596 596

544 544 571 571
495 495 723 723 534 534
620 620 479 479 692 692 534 534
462 462 648 648 368 368
591 591 648 648
541525 541525
509 509 448 448

482 482 Year 2020

Year 2020 407 407 Year 2020
Year 2020
498 498 Year 2019
Year 2019 588 588 Year 2019
Year 2019
514 514 Year 2018
Year 2018 588 588 Year 2018
Year 2018
564 564 Year 2017
Year 2017 629 629 Year 2017
Year 2017
592 592 Year 2016
Year 2016 657 657 Year 2016
Year 2016

UnskilledUnskilled
Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled
Skilled Skilled UnskilledUnskilled
Semi-Skilled Skilled Skilled
Semi-Skilled

Source: Minimum Wage-India

Source: Minimum Wage-India

3 3 4 4

353 353 378 378

342 342 351 351
327 327 339 339
313 313 431 431 329 329
455 455 404 404 329 329
441India I&A291
441 Gleeds 291
392 392
20
421 421 382 382
403 403 382 382
375 375
 514 514 Year 2018Year 2018 588 588 Year 2018Year 2018
564 564 Year 2017Year 2017 629 629 Year 2017Year 2017
482592 482
592 Year 2020Year 2020 407 407 Year 2020Year 2020
Year 2016Year 2016 657 657
498 498 Year 2019Year 2019 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review -Year 2016
January Year 2016
2021
588 588 Year 2019Year 2019
514 Semi-Skilled
Unskilled Unskilled
Semi-Skilled 514 Skilled Skilled
Year 2018Year 2018 Unskilled Unskilled 588 Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled 588 Skilled Skilled
Year 2018Year 2018
564 564 Year 2017Year 2017 629 629 Year 2017Year 2017
592 592 Year 2016Year 2016 657 657 Year 2016Year 2016

Unskilled Unskilled Semi-Skilled

Semi-Skilled Skilled Skilled Unskilled Unskilled Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled Skilled Skilled
3. Chennai 4. Hyderabad:
3 3 4 4

353 353 378 378

342 342 351 351
3 3
327 327 4 339 4 339
313 313 431 431 329 329
455 455 291 291 404 404 329 329
441 441 353 353 392 392 378 378
421 421 342 342 382 382 351 351
403 403 382 382339
375 375327 327 339
313 313 Year 2020Year 2020 431 431 329 329 Year 2020Year 2020
455 455 338
291 338
291 404 404 366
329 366
329
441 441 Year 2019Year 2019 392 392 Year 2019Year 2019
421 421 364 364 366 366
403 403 380 Year 2018Year 2018 382 382 Year 2018Year 2018
375 375 380 382 382376 376
398 398 Year 2017Year 2017 387 387 Year 2017Year 2017
Year 2020Year 2020 411 Year 2020Year 2020
338 411 338 411 Year 2016Year 2016 366 366 411 Year 2016Year 2016
Year 2019Year 2019 366 366 Year 2019Year 2019
364 364
380 380 Year 2018Year 2018 376 376 Year 2018Year 2018
Unskilled Unskilled
Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled
Skilled Year
Skilled
2017Year 2017 Unskilled Unskilled Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled
387 Skilled
387 Skilled
Year 2017Year 2017
398 398
411 411 Year 2016Year 2016 411 411 Year 2016Year 2016

Source: Chennai.nic.in Source: Department of Labour, Government of Telangana 

Unskilled Unskilled Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled Skilled Skilled Unskilled Unskilled Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled Skilled Skilled

5 5 6 6

5. Bengaluru: 6. Pune:
470 470 533 533
5 5454 454 6 493
6 493
358 358 414 414
332 332 576 576 385 385
490 490 310 310 539 539 325 325
474 474 488 488
377 377 470 470 456 456 533 533
350 350 454 454 424 424 493 493
325 325358 358 414 414
332 332 576 576 385 385
490 490 Year 2020Year 2020 Year 2020Year 2020
317
310 317
310 539 539 346
325 346
325
474 474 Year 2019Year 2019 488 488 372 372 Year 2019Year 2019
341 341
377 377 456 456
350 350 367 367 Year 2018Year 2018 424 424
443 443 Year 2018Year 2018
325 325
464 464 Year 2017Year 2017 512 512 Year 2017Year 2017
Year 2020Year 2020 Year 2020Year 2020
317480 317480 Year 2016Year 2016 346
551 346
551 Year 2016Year 2016
341 341 Year 2019Year 2019 372 372 Year 2019Year 2019
367 367 Year 2018Year 2018 443 443 Year 2018Year 2018
Unskilled Unskilled 464 Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled 464
Skilled Year 2017Year 2017
Skilled Unskilled Unskilled 512 Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled 512
Skilled Year 2017Year 2017
Skilled
480 480 Year 2016Year 2016 551 551 Year 2016Year 2016

Unskilled Unskilled
Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled
Skilled Skilled Unskilled Unskilled Semi-Skilled
Semi-Skilled Skilled Skilled

Source: Minimum Wage-India Source: Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran

Note: Some values are corrected in this issue.

Gleeds India I&A 21

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Construction sector
outlook

Commercial Base Build Purvankara Limited, Mumbai

Gleeds India I&A 22


Construction sector outlook
Various sectors have been affected by the pandemic
differently and some have a more positive outlook than
others. For construction, the pandemic had initially
sabotaged the growth of the otherwise booming
construction and real estate sector. The industry however,
quickly got back on its feet in the second half 2020.
Despite the challenges of the supply chain, shortage of
migrant labour and the liquidity crunch, new opportunity
in upcoming sectors have renewed the investors. Various
sectors have been affected differently and some have a
more positive outlook than others. Though achieving pre-
COVID stats might be a long-term goal, the slow recovery
is encouraging.
Commercial sector
The COVID-19 has certainly brought on a different
perspective to commercial workspaces as we know it.
The spaces were ideally a place to collaborate but in the
changing times, more importance is being given to location,
experience, convenience, functionality and well-being.
Bangalore and Hyderabad are on the path to recovery
accounting for nearly 47% of the total leasing activity year to
date. Global investors are interested in Bangalore and with
the improving metro, infrastructure may be a comeback for
flexible workspaces. Hyderabad in the 3rd quarter of 2020,
is reported to have accounted for around 3.7 million square
feet of gross absorption year-to-date.
It is understood that this sector will continue to attract
investors mostly technology giants who have entered the
market already contributing to the economic development
of the country. However, in the light of the pandemic and the
nearly 10-month remote working, change in the employers
and employees outlook towards commercial spaces is
seen to reset now focussing primarily on the well- being
of employees and flexibility offered to them. It is also noted
that work from home will not be a permanent solution as
collaboration is a need for employees and a core human
trait. Reduced seating with more per seat area allocation,
a greater number of collaboration spaces, larger than
before and more open plan open area designs are likely to
be the new trend for the future workspace design. There
is expectation of large individual campus development
with critical staff accommodation facilities being actively
considered
Gleeds India I&A
Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021
Residential sector
Sales in the residential sector have understandably not
reached the pre-COVID levels in the top seven cities.
Mumbai, however, is experiencing better sales because of
the stamp duty cut in Maharashtra. A PropEquity report
stated that the sales in the top 7 cities in India had risen by
20% in October 2020 as compared to September 2020 but
is still lesser than the sales in October 2019. Hyderabad,
Kolkata and NCR have recovered and exceeded launches
in the 3rd quarter in comparison to the Q12020 and
Mumbai and Bengaluru have recovered nearly 75% and
68%, respectively, as per a report by Anarock. . There are a
large number of stalled projects, accounting to about 4000
billion INR in the top 7 cities, many of the above have not
been able to hit the completion date in 2020, though works
have commenced as early as 2013
Buyers are now interested in more spacious homes and
not necessarily in the tier 1 cities, a shift from before.
The waive off on GST for ready-to-move-in properties
and GST slashes on affordable and regular units motivate
buyers. After the RBI announced several rate cuts, bringing
the repo rate down to 4%, and its positive effect on buyer
sentiment would only manifest in the medium to long
term. This step could be considerable support for existing
buyers, who might struggle to pay EMIs in the short-term
or medium-term, because of the lockdown or in the event
of job loss.
There is also the tax towards the land that the Government
should consider. 33% towards land mainly in the cities
where the cost of the land is quite high can be quite
discouraging for a buyer. Policy changes towards the
significantly high land taxes would put the buyers at ease.
Other initiatives of the Government such as the affordable
housing for all by 2022 might be the ‘light at the end of
the tunnel’ for some developers as this market is seen
to be the future of the residential sector at present. With
the luxury market already stressed, mid-luxury developers
now seek to venture into this region. Delhi and Mumbai are
the two regions that are leading in the affordable housing
sector followed by Pune and Chennai. Another segment
that can reshape the future of the residential sector is
Senior citizen living spaces, the importance of which has
been noticed during the pandemic, where the country was
in lockdown and the lack of domestic help and the inability
to use technology to fend for the day-to-day needs, was
not a hassle in such living spaces.
23

Hospitality sector
The hospitality sectors have been the most affected in
the last three quarters of 2020 an effect of the COVID-19
lingers on into the next few quarters as well. The sector,
however, refusing to give up, has opened up some of its
hospitality sections such as hotels and resorts with new
safety measures and has managed to gain consumer
confidence, promoting stay in hotels and resorts. Hope
for the sector has risen with people travelling domestically
to escape the long confinement in their homes possibly
willing to spend on their first flight or a nice holiday. This
surge was portrayed immediately after the lockdown lift,
holiday season and end of the year. The growth trajectory
might rise once the vaccine and the vaccination across
the country take place. This is very much necessary
for the sector as global travel restrictions might keep
international travellers at bay for some time. Apart from this,
stand-alone and private villas in the driveable distance
Retail sector
The Retailer’s Association of India are optimistic that 85% of
their pre-pandemic sales will be reached in the coming six
months across fashion, electronics and groceries. Though
the festive season and the wedding season did bring in
some hope the lack of travel and lack of international
travellers escaping the winter has brought about stress in
the sector.
Unfortunately, the retail is still in a negative growth and
might continue for a while until there is extended rollout
of the vaccine and safety is no more a apprehension. In
November, consumer durables and electronics category
continued to recover with sales at 12% year-on-year.
Food and grocery category indicate sales growth at 5%
year-on-year and apparel and clothing segment is still
under pressure with about -12% year-on-year behind
pre-pandemic sales. The retail sector’s digital market has
surged over the last year and continues on. While, brick
and mortar are yet to revive, the truth of which will be
known following the complete solution to the pandemic
situation, e-commerce is thriving on this very situation and
has now has a good foothold for its future growth.
Like the hospitality industry the retail industry has also
reached out to the Government to aide the sector
which employs over 46 million and is one of the largest
contributors to the Indian GDP sizing to about $854 billion
as per the RAI.
Gleeds India I&A
Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021
from major metros have seen a considerable uptick in the
demand which may trigger extended villa developments in
near future.
The sector has requested the Government to support its
revival which even with the present demand might take a
while to stabilise. The need for liquidity and policy support
is very much required as noted by the Federation of Hotel
& Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) and National
Restaurant Association of India (NRAI).
The sector now seems to need a serious restructuring for
its future survival with situations such as the pandemic in
view, whether it be merging of assets or renovating to make
it more competitive for the local/international crowds. The
Government has assigned the RBI to look into the financial
support that the Government can offer this sector.
Healthcare sector
The health care system is set to grow considerably and
is projected by the IBEF to increase three-fold to INR 8.6
trillion by 2022. There is a significant scope for enhancing
healthcare services considering that healthcare spending
as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is
rising. The Government’s expenditure on healthcare sector
has grown to 1.6% of the GDP in FY20BE from 1.3% in
FY16. Health insurance is gaining a large momentum in
India. Gross direct premium income underwritten by health
insurance grew 17.16% y-o-y to Rs. 51,637.84 crore
(US$ 7.39 billion) in FY20. In November 2020, National
Telemedicine services completed 8 lakh teleconsultations
since its launch, enabling patient-to-doctor consultations
from the confines of their home, as well as doctor-to-
doctor consultations. The number of medical colleges
have increased to more than 560 from just 412 in FY16
which is substantial. India is also now vastly into research
and development and medical tourism has become a big
part of this sector, which would attract foreign investors.
Compared to the global front however, India’s health
sector spends 1.6% of its GDP while other countries on
an average spend 8.8%. IMF in a report had noted that
a boost in the health sector investment could boost the
economy as this sector creates both high and low skill
jobs.
The sector is looking very promising with the hospital
industry in India forecasted to increase to Rs. 8.6 trillion
(US$ 132.84 billion) by FY22 from Rs. 4 trillion (US$ 61.79
billion) in FY17 at a CAGR of 16–17%. The Government
of India is planning to increase public health spending to
2.5% of the country’s GDP by 2025.
24

Pharmaceutical sector
The Union Cabinet has given approval on amending
of existing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy in the
pharmaceutical sector in order to allow FDI up to 100%
under the automatic route for manufacturing of medical
devices subject to certain conditions.
In November 2020, the Indian Institute of Technology
(IIT) Bombay has stepped up research and development
(R&D) amid COVID-19 and researchers are developing
several products in an attempt to curtail infection. This
rise in investment in research and development is likely
to translate to investments in research development
blocks and facilities as well as manufacturing units for its
production.
There have also been Government initiatives to enhance
the sector’s performance. India and the Netherlands
look to collaborate to provide digital health facilities
and securities to all citizens. In September 2020, the
government announced production linked incentive (PLI)
Data centres
The COVID-19 has certainly enhanced the IT side of
the country. Many companies were forced into remote
working and those who had invested in technology in past
enjoyed very less disruption and were able to conduct their
business more effectively. With the well-being of employees
the prime focus of any competitive company, flexibility of
work from home and office are being explored, all of them
will translating to the rise in need of cloud based data
processing and storage, leading to exponential growth
and interest in data centres and data security options.
Following on a rise in data consumption as much as 38%
rise year-on-year for FY21 as well as data localization
norms, this is one of the most watched and talked about
sector, There are a projection of at least 28 hyperscale
datacentres over the next three years, which will span over
16+ million sq. ft. with at least 1,400+ MW of IT power
capacity as per a report from Anarock. The colocation
growth has increased to about 8% in the first half of the
Gleeds India I&A
Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021
scheme for the pharmaceutical industry worth Rs. 15,000
crore (US$ 2.04 billion).
India plans to set up a nearly Rs. 1 lakh crore (US$ 1.3
billion) fund to provide boost to companies to manufacture
pharmaceutical ingredients domestically by 2023 as
reported by the IBEF. Rural healthcare programmes,
lifesaving drugs and vaccines heralds good growth of the
healthcare sector.
India is also set out to produce the COVID-19 vaccines,
and is the second to only USA in production. Though, with
the estimations the market are is dynamic, India maybe
all set to export vaccines all across the world. Of all the
vaccine candidates in the market, the Oxford-AstraZeneca
is India’s largest produce through Serum Institute of
India. With all of this, there is an expectation of growth
and investment in India in coming months by major global
organizations.
year 2020, the capacity totalling to 375MW in the first half
of 2020. The growth expectancy for 2025 is projected to
be 1078MW which is likely to translate into 9.3 million sqft
of space as reported By JLL. This is likely to raise interest
in investors considering built to suit development for global
cloud providers.
Digital India drive will see a new light this year with all
companies revising their IT spending which will grow in
tandem with the growing IT requirement of the country.
The cities that are likely to grow the fastest in datacentres
are Mumbai as it stays the preferred choice of cloud
players followed by Chennai primarily due to its low-
cost development costs. The restructuring of the digital
infrastructure and favourable policy push through
dedicated data centre parks is key to the growth of this
sector. IT hub spots such as Pune, NCR and Hyderabad is
also expected to see increased demand.
25

Manufacturing sector
This sector has been well supported by the Government
even before the onset of the COVID-19. The Make in
India programme brought this sector to the spotlight.
This initiative is known to have attracted hi technology
manufacturing global giants for setting up manufacturing.
The business condition for the sector continues to look
positive and the Government aim to create jobs in the
sector. Strong growth was recorded in the production of
basic metals (10.8%), intermediate goods (8.8%), food
products (2.7%) and tobacco products (2.9%). India’s
Index of eight core industries stood at 131.9 in FY20. IN the
beginning of the last quarter in 2020, India’s manufacturing
sector recorded improvement for the 3rd consecutive
month with businesses growing production to the greatest
extent in 13 years in the middle of robust sales growth.
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and
Development (UNCTAD), India ranked among the top 10
recipients of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in South Asia
in 2019, attracting US$ 49 billion—a 16% increase from
the previous year.
Infrastructure
The potential for infrastructure is quite high and the
Government has been keen on investing in such projects
more so after the onset of the COVID-19, with the National
Highway Authorities of India awarding a record high of
744km length highway projects for the April to August
2020 period valued to be about INR 473 billion.
Projects such as greenfield Delhi-Amritsar-Katra
expressway with an estimated value of INR 8.40 billion and
six-lane, access-controlled highway under Bharatmala
Pariyojana an estimated INR 7.07 billion have been invited
to bid in the recent months.
68 development works mostly related to smart city
and worth circa INR 13.31 billion is set to commence
in Rajasthan. Mangaluru Smart City will be one of the
first smart cities in Karnataka to go live. The Integrated
Command and Control Centers (ICCC) of Mangaluru
Gleeds India I&A
Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021
The growth of micro, small and medium enterprises
(MSMEs) might pick up as the National Small Industries
Corporation (NSIC) signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) with Dun & Bradstreet Information
Services India to create an ecosystem to encourage,
finance and promote growth. India is likely to benefit
from the shift of the supply chains from China to other
economies, a chance for India to rebound from the effect
on the pandemic. The absorb this new requirement, India
should have policies and strategies to.
Manufacturing units such as Samsung, Apple, Foxconn,
Tesla to name some big names who are setting up their
production units in various places in India, propelling this
sector to new heights. The Government are also looking
to encourage employment through the skill training for
3 lakh migrant workers provided by the Ministry of Skill
Development and Entrepreneurship, from 116 districts
across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Odisha, Madhya
Pradesh and Jharkhand which would be centrally controlled
by the component of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas
Yojana (PMKVY) 2016-20.
Smart City, a major component of the Smart City Project is
already being used as a war room for the administrators to
combat COVID-19 pandemic.
The Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) a statutory
body under the Ministry of Railway, has taken up
redevelopment works of several railway stations across the
Indian Railways network. They are set out to develop five
railway stations in the state of Bihar. They will be equipped
with state-of-the-art amenities such as restaurants, food
plaza, parking zones with links to station platforms,
cafeteria, internet, shopping areas along with medical
emergency booth, amongst others.
The CFO of a large construction company sees a potential
of $80-100 billion per year investment in infrastructure and
expect a upward trend till 2023 which if materialised can
be a big boost in the construction sector.
26
 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

H2 2020 Construction
costs: Sector wise

Ornate Grove Towers, Mumbai

Gleeds India I&A 27

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

H2 2020 Construction costs: Sector wise

Table 3: Sector wise costing

Assumptions for Bengaluru Pune Delhi
Building Type
Costs ₹ / Sqft ₹ / Sqft ₹ / Sqft
Residential***
Affordable BUA: 3,00,000 sqft 1,950 to 2,400 1,900 to 2,300 2,290 to 2,800
Premium BUA: 6,00,000 sqft 2,460 to 3,400 2,460 to 3,400 3,200 to 3,700
Commercial Building
Commercial BUA: 10,00,000 sqft 2,350 to 2,900 2,700 to 3,100 2,950 to 3,500
Office Fit-out Note: Costs based on carpet area for office fit-outs only.
Basic CA: 50,000sqft 2,200 to 2,500 2,000 to 2,400 2,200 to 2,500
Standard CA: 50,000sqft 2,600 to 3,500 2,500 to 3,400 2,600 to 3,500
Premium CA: 50,000sqft 4,000 to 7,000 4,000 to 6,800 4,000 to 7,200
Retail
Malls with retail stores 2,415 to 2,885 2,375 to 2,850 2,400 to 3,050
Store fit-out costs on carpet area
Quick Service Restaurants CA: 2,500 sqft 2,750 to 3,300 2,700 to 3,300 2,900 to 3,400
Apparel stores CA:25,000 sqft 2,000 to 2,375 2,000 to 2,275 2,150 to 2,525
Discount sports store CA:25,000 sqft 1,250 to 1,850 1,200 to 1,800 1,500 to 1,970
Jewellery CA: 8,000 sqft 5,000 to 6,700 4,800 to 6,400 5,500 to 7,200
Hospitality
3 star Hotel 100 key 3,800 to 4,800 3,400 to 4,650 4,600 to 5,670
4 star Hotel 150 key 4,650 to 5,670 4,250 to 5,250 5,950 to 7,000
5 star Hotel 150 key 6,800 to 8,750 6,300 to 8,035 7,500 to 9,275
Healthcare
Hospitals 500 bed capacity 4,500 to 5,350 4,550 to 5,450 5,500 to 6,800
Education
500 Pupil,
School* 2,600 to 3,400 2,300 to 2,950 4,250 to 4,950
high school
University** Campus 5,100 to 5,975 4,700 to 5,670 5,500 to 6,550
Industrial
Pharmaceutical 3,300 to 4,330 2,970 to 3,900 3,500 to 4,450
Others
Multi-level Car park 850 to 1,250 800 to 1,100 1,050 to 1,350
Data Centres
Shell only Multi-tenant 4,200 to 6,400 4.200 to 6.200 4,400 to 6,550
Shell only Hyperscale 5,250 to 7,350 5,100 to 7,200 5,400 to 7,575
18,00,00,000 to 18,00,00,000 to 18,00,00,000 to
Fit-out (₹/MW) Multi-tenant
22,66,00,000 22,66,00,000 22,66,00,0000
16,00,00,000 to 16,00,00,000 to 16,00,00,000 to
Fit-out (₹ /MW) Hyperscale
20,60,00,000 20,60,00,000 20,60,00,000

* Classroom with basic indoor and outdoor facilities

**Learning rooms with required amenities
*** For residential floor height range, please refer to the assumptions
Source: Gleeds India Data-base

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 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Table 4: Sector wise costing Contd.

Assumptions for Mumbai Chennai Hyderabad

Building Type
Costs ₹ / Sqft ₹ / Sqft ₹ / Sqft
Residential***
Affordable BUA: 3,00,000 sqft 2,375 to 2,885 1,865 to 2,270 1,865 to 2,175
Premium BUA: 6,00,000 sqft 3,200 to 3,865 2,545 to 3,150 2,400 to 3,100
Commercial Building
Commercial BUA: 10,00,000 sqft 3,050 to 3,600 2,300 to 2,850 2,375 to 2,900
Office     Note: Costs based on carpet area for office fit-outs only.
Basic CA: 50,000sqft 2,200 to 2,600 2,000 to 2,400 2,200 to 2,500
Standard CA: 50,000sqft 2,800 to 3,600 2,500 to 3,400 2,600 to 3,500
Premium CA: 50,000sqft 4,000 to 7,200 4,000 to 6,500 4,000 to 7,000
Retail
Malls with retail stores 2,545 to 3,090 2,375 to 2,900 2,375 to 2,780
Store fit-out costs on carpet area
Quick Service Restaurants BUA: 2,500 sqft 3,000 to 3,500 2,700 to 3,200 2,750 to 3,300
Apparel stores BUA: 25,000 sqft 2,200 to 2,575 1,900 to 2,325 2,000 to 2,375
Discount sports store BUA: 25,000 sqft 1,500 to 2,060 1,200 to 1,750 1,250 to 1,850
Jewellery BUA: 8,000 sqft 5,500 to 7,200 5,000 to 6,200 5,000 to 6,700
Hospitality
3-star Hotel 100 key 4,650 to 6,000 3,700 to 4,650 3,400 to 4,800
4-star Hotel 150 key 5,950 to 7,420 4,500 to 5,565 4,350 to 5,665
5-star Hotel 150 key 7,500 to 9,785 6,400 to 7,725 6,800 to 8,350
Healthcare
Hospitals 500 bed capacity 5,500 to 7,000 4,200 to 5,150 4,400 to 5,350
Education
500 Pupil,
School* 4,650 to 5,150 2,500 to 3,350 2,550 to 3,750
high school
University** Campus 5,950 to 6,700 4,650 to 5,670 4,650 to 5,725
Industrial
Pharmaceutical manufacturing units 4,000 to 5,665 3,100 to 4,100 3,250 to 4,225
Others
Multi-level Car park 1,200 to 1,400 800 to 1,125 850 to 1,250
Data Centres
Shell only Multi-tenant 4,500 to 6,700 4,200 to 6,200 4,250 to 6,300
Shell only Hyperscale 5,500 to 7,725 5,100 to 7,200 5,200 to 7,300
18,00,00,000 to 18,00,00,000 to 18,00,00,000 to
Fit-out (₹/MW) Multi-tenant
22,66,00,000 22,66,00,000 22,66,00,0000
16,00,00,000 to 16,00,00,000 to 16,00,00,000 to
Fit-out (₹/MW) Hyperscale
20,60,00,000 20,60,00,000 20,60,00,000

* Classroom with basic indoor and outdoor facilities

**Learning rooms with required amenities
*** For residential floor height range, please refer to the assumptions
Source: Gleeds India Data-base

Gleeds India I&A 29

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Assumptions made and notes

for reading the costs

Data provided in this report is an average range of costs. indicated. The following are the parameters that are to be
There are many cost parameters that contribute to costs considered:
and some judgement is to be applied while using the costs

Procurement
Site conditions Market conditions Residential towers
route considered
heights range are
as follows:
Assumptions made
Location Design
on site abnormal Mumbai: 130 to 140m
Delhi: 125 to 130m
Building shape Requirements of Time scale for Bangalore: 60 to 70m
and size the end user completion Hyderabad: 80 to 90m
Chennai: 60 to 70m
Quality and safety Pune: 80 to 90m
Contract type Any site restrictions
systems required

Please note the following pertaining to the costs data All costs are deemed to exclude:
provided:
• Site abnormals and any specific site conditions
• All costs noted are construction costs only
• Client’s cost for land acquisition
• All costs are in Indian National Rupees unless noted
• Client’s overheads
otherwise
• Client’s profit margin
• All costs are per square foot unless noted otherwise
• Pre-opening costs
• All cost data is indicative of costs incurred at the time
of the making of the report • Consultants, designers, and other project management
fees
• The impact of Covid-19 is not accounted. All costs are
pre-Covid-19 unless noted otherwise. • Land Value
• Project Insurance
All costs are deemed to include: • Force Majeure
• All construction costs including shell and core, • Any administration costs incurred by the Client
architectural works, interiors and finishes, MEP and • FF&E costs excluded in University, schools, hotels
external development works unless noted otherwise Any preclearing, logistic costs incurred by Client before
• Contractor’s preliminaries site hand over to contractor
• Contractor’s overheads and profits • GST
• Contingency • For data centres only
• Inflation (tender and construction inflation). -S pecial infrastructure works such as mass excavation
- Cost of the HT Sub-stations and transformers
- Cost of the Server racks, LLE equipment.
Area definitions followed in this document.
As per IS 3861-2002 RERA

Built up area Plinth area shall mean the built-up covered measured The built-up area includes the carpet area, plus the
(BUA) at the floor level of the basement or of any storey extra areas certified by the authorities, such as the area
of the outer and inner walls, dry balcony area, etc.

All costs noted below is on the built-up area unless noted otherwise. This indicates the cost incurred on all the unusable areas, still contribute to costs.

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 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Cost indices

Dheeraj Realty Oneness, Mumbai

Gleeds India I&A 31

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Cost indices

Gleeds carried out an extensive exercise to map the costs
across the various Indian cities.
The following methodology was adopted to derive the
indices.
•  A basket of items comprising of most commonly
used materials in construction, labour and consumables
was established. These goods have been identified and
known to demonstrate the inflation and dynamic nature
of the goods typically used in the construction sector.
Approximate individual quantities within the items were
taken to represent standard type of commercial building
Appropriate weightage was given to each of the items and
based on weighted average method, a base Index was
calculated
• December has been considered as this is the best
representation of costs before the uncertainty of the
pandemic. The base city taken for calculation of Index is
Bangalore
• Cost movement for the different cities across similar
timelines has been mapped and the indices were thus
derived.

The graph below indicates the construction costs indices for the six major cities for four months
starting December 2019, with Bengaluru as the base.

Graph 18: Cost indices city-wise

Bangalore
Bangalore NCR
NCR
130
130 Bangalore
Bangalore 130
130 NCR
NCR
130
130
120
120 130
130
120
120
120 116 120 118
118
120
110
110 116 120
110
110
116 107
107 108
108 106 118
118
110
110
100
100 105
105 105
105 104
104 116 110
110
100
100 106
103
103
100
100 107
107 108
108 106
100
100 105
105 105
105 104
104 100
100 106
90
90 90
90 103
103
100
100
Dec'19 Mar '20 June '20 Sept '20 Dec '20 Dec'19 Mar '20 June '20 Sept '20 Dec '20
Dec'19 Mar '20 June '20 Sept '20 Dec '20 Dec'19 Mar '20 June '20 Sept '20 Dec '20
9090 9090
Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20 Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20

Mumbai
Mumbai Pune
Pune
130
130
Mumbai
Mumbai 130
130 Pune
Pune
130
130
120
120 130
130
122
122 120
120
120
120
110
110 122
122 120
120
110
110 115
115
110
110 111
111
108
108
110
110
100 105
105 110 115
115
100 111
111 110
100
100 104 104
104
110
110 108
108 102
102 104
100
100 105
105 100 9898
9090 100
90
90 104
104 104
104
102
102
Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20 98
98
Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20
9090 9090
Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20 Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20

130
Hyderabad
Hyderabad Chennai
Chennai
130 130
130
130
Hyderabad
Hyderabad Chennai
Chennai
130
120 130
130
120
120 120
120
120
110 116
116 120
120
110
110 110 113
113
110
110
Gleeds 116
116 110
110
100 India I&A
100 104
104
105
105 104
104
100
100 103
103 104
104 103
103
113 32
113

100
100 9999 105
105 100
100 9898 104
9090 104
104 104
104 9090 103
103 104 103
103
 130
130
130
130
120
120
122
122 120
120
Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021
110
110 110 115
115
111
111 110
110
110 108
108
100
100 105
105 100
100 104
104 104
104
102
102
9898
9090 9090
Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20 Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20

130
Hyderabad
Hyderabad Chennai
Chennai
130 130
130

120
120 120
120

110
110 116
116 110
110 113
113

100
100 104 105
105 104 100
100 103
103 104
104 103
104 104 103
9999 9898
9090 9090
Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20 Dec'19
Dec'19 Mar
Mar '20
'20 June
June '20
'20 Sept
Sept '20
'20 Dec
Dec '20
'20

Source: Gleeds’ Internal Database.

Note: Indices on the last month of each quarter considered.

The indices have leapfrogged in the last month of the year 2020 in a 11% to 12% range from the indices in September 2020. This
is due to the unnatural material rate fluctuation in the December 2020. With Steel and metal rates shooting up and the consequent
effect of oil on plastic and fuel costs have shot rates up. This instability is a cause for concern for the current projects which have to
deal with this unprecedented cost increasing cutting into any contingencies kept for the project and demanding for more budgets for
project completion.

Brookefield, Brigade, Bangalore

Gleeds India I&A 33

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

The path of reformation

MFAR Keystone tech park, Bangalore

Gleeds India I&A 34

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

The path of reformation

The industry has been known to adapt to change and emerge stronger than before when forced into difficult circumstances.
The COVID-19 situation has been one such incident where the circumstances have indeed forced the industry to rethink
and reframe its way of working.
Digitisation is key and though the industry has commenced its journey, the pandemic accelerated its course. Some
adaptions which are set to reform the industry are:

Modern method of construction- Prefabricated construction

The MoHUA initiated Global Housing Technology Challenge India (GHTC-India) in January 2019 which aimed to identify
and mainstream globally best available proven construction technologies that are sustainable, green and disaster resilient
through a challenge process which will bring a paradigm shift in construction practices for affordable housing. New
technologies were explored and with Construction Technology India (CTI), the six broad categories finalised were and six
light house projects (about 1000 units each) were approved to showcase these technologies.
• Precast Concrete Construction System - 3D Precast volumetric
• Precast Concrete Construction System - Precast components assembled at site
• Light Gauge Steel Structural System & Pre-engineered Steel Structural System
• Prefabricated Sandwich Panel System
• Monolithic Concrete Construction
• Stay in Place Formwork System.
Cities in which about 1000+ units are being worked on using the above methods are Indore, Chennai, Ranchi, Lucknow,
Agartala and Rajkot. With the success of these initiatives, this might become the new standard in housing construction.
With the COVID-19 outbreak, precast concrete is seen to be becoming more popular among contractors and developers,
considering the speed, the better-quality product and the savings in time.

Digital twins, Building information management and

other construction software

Niti Aayog, the Government think tank, has promoted the use of BIM and are of the opinion that the there is a significant
cost savings of upto 20% with the implementation of BIM. Infrastructure projects from roads to ports to from the data
that was given by Mospi indicated that the 1,682 projects have gone up by INR 4 trillion over their life cycle. These delays
are to be quickly curtailed and the Government is seen to back up this new technology to speed up infra works. Digital
software inclusion, digital planning and design tools along with other construction software would be key in driving down
the costs and time. In addition, consideration for the implementation of BIM of national highways, greenfield airport and
metro projects, station redevelopment and railway capacity augmentation programmes. This is also being implemented
in the housing for all drive.
The increase of 10% carpet area within the same budget has been made possible with the use of construction technology
software, Tekla software for a housing project in Bhubaneshwar. Such technologies are being explored to rationalise the
construction overspend and goof return in investments.
There is a drive towards the incorporation of smart cities, a digital India initiative. Countries such as Hong Kong, Singapore
and Seoul all have been able to work on the COVID impact because of their existing investment in technology and have
manged beautifully the tackling of an unknown problem. Digital twins for their cities was the key to their success. This
is a big prospect for India, which is a large country with large rail and road infrastructure and growing number of cities.
Incorporation of digital twinning in the transport industry and smart cities, will make the system easy monitor, reduce risks
and strategize changes before actually going on ground.

Gleeds India I&A 35

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

The road ahead

Dan Hotel, Bangalore

Gleeds India I&A 36


The road ahead
The construction industry is wrestling with the
consequences of the pandemic. While the first half of the
year 2020 was in lockdown followed by the preparation
for recommencement of works with changed procedures,
the second half was all about the adaption to change and
inflation induced by decisions of the past. Material rates,
labour rates, supply chain, project timelines, procurement
strategies, contractual obligations, health and safety
procedures, site logistics and employee well-being all have
had to be revisited, restructured and or reorganised.
The impact of the COVID-19 on design and way of
construction will be long lasting; however, the industry’s
complete recovery is progressing well. Faster and advanced
technologies are now being explored and incorporated into
construction standard methods of working. The importance
of time translating to costs and a good and quick return of
investment has been the prime focus always, which now
has only strengthened in the circumstances. The current
dependency on labour and the supply chain, the impact
of global changes on material prices, the local production
and distribution capacity have all been brought to light
forcing a reassessment in its strategy. The use of digital
twin, modern method of construction, prefabrication and
data analytics have gained traction and are being adopted
as the new standard of construction.
While, the otherwise booming sectors like residential,
commercial and hospitality are conservative, sectors
such as healthcare, pharmaceutical and technology
sectors are bravely moving forward, looking to enhance
its services and expand its size to optimise its reach to
Gleeds India I&A
Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021
the people. Warehouses and Data Center parks sectors
growth footprint is widening due to the increasing use
and demand for e-commerce and the trending work from
home option. Senior living and Villa developments for a
comfortable living will pick up.
Sustainability is another aspect that has seemingly risen
this year. India is one of the countries that has always
concentrated on sustainability, but with the lockdown,
achieving advanced sustainable solutions is the key driver.
Apart from only constructing sustainable buildings, with
minimum consumption of valuable resources like electricity
and water, there is more concern towards healthy buildings
and healthy living, tilting the scales more towards the
human aspect from the previous building infrastructure
focussed concerns. This shift is attracting International
brands who are keen on these aspects and is resulting in
setting a higher bar to reach for the industry. All of this will
lead to only more positives in times to come.
The Government’s encouragement for a better developed
and digitised India is another key driver in the growth of
the new construction ecosystem and is believed to bring
about ‘new heights’. The increased budget towards
infrastructure and schemes such as housing for all using
advanced construction methods is likely to boost India’s
existing construction portfolio.
The industry is anticipated to emerge stronger and more
resilient in this coming year, as the worst has been left
behind with a bright future ahead, with new beginnings,
new possibilities and new optimism.
Interglobe Hotels
37
 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

References

• mospi.nic.in

• IBEF.org

• India Manufacturing PMI | 2012-2020 Data | 2021-2023 Forecast | Calendar | Historical (tradingeconomics.com)

• IMF Annual report 2020

• Global Construction 2030: Oxford economics

• Foresight 2021: ISI Emerging Market Group

• Global Economic prospects: World bank group

• Construction Week Online

• Media reports: The Guardian, Weforum, Business Standard news, India times, The Financial express, The Hindu,
The Economic times, Money Control, Indian Economy, Current affairs, Livemint, Bloomberg

Abbreviations

MRICS: Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Mtr: Linear metre

Surveyors.
MT: Metric tonne
USD: United States Dollar
Al: Aluminium
INR: Indian National Rupee
Cu: Copper
GST: Goods and Services Tax
MW: Mega Watt
MEP: Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing
PVC: Polyvinyl Chloride
BUA: Built-up area
GI: Galvanised iron
CA: Carpet area
uPVC: Unplasticised Polyvinyl Chloride
Sqft: Square foot
cPVC: Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride
Cuft: Cubic feet
CI: Cast iron
Sqmm: Square millimetre
NCR: National Capital Region
Ltr: Litre

Gleeds India I&A 38

 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Our services

A MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACH

Gleeds operates a partnering principle with clients and project teams, offering impartial
advice across an extensive range of services to provide solutions for every stage of the
property life-cycle.

• Project Management – control and delivery of your projects

• Cost Management – predictability and control of costs
• Health & Safety • Project Monitoring
• Advisory – delivering bespoke integrated solutions
• Gleeds Digital Services (GDS)

India overview

Residential
117 million sq.ft

Education Hospitality
5.2 million sq.ft 6397 Keys

Sector
Mixed Use Presence Industrial
18.8 million sq.ft 4 million sq.ft
India

Bengaluru (Head Office)

Commercial Leisure & Retail
Mumbai 88 million sq.ft faith Based 24 million sq.ft
9 million sq.ft
Pune
Healthcare
Delhi NCR
3060+ Beds

Chennai

Hyderabad

Gleeds India I&A 39

Register with Gleeds- our cloud based integrated registration database for design professionals,
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This issue was compiled by Gleeds India I&A with contributions from Siva Senathipathy, Jagjit Avdeel, PVSS Varma,
Jagan Mohan K, Ravi K, Mallikarjun GS, Mayura Godse, Sanjeev S, Vimalraj B, Ramana Kumar, Bhagyshree Parikh,
Kiran Pawar, Rajesh Babu, Bharat H, Padmini G and Srinivas S.

© January 2021 by Gleeds Consulting (I) Pvt. Ltd.

Legal Disclaimer: This paper was prepared by Gleeds India Consulting (I) Pvt. Ltd. and is for general information only. Neither Gleeds nor
any of their partners, directors, employees or other persons acting on their behalf makes any warranty, express or implied and assumes any
liability with respect to the information or methods contained in this paper to any person or party. This document is subject to copyright and
must not be reproduced.
 Indian Construction Costs - A Biannual Review - January 2021

Gleeds India I&A 41