The Indian Express (Delhi Edition)

Why everyone loves a basement

Under the microscope since the July 27 deluge that claimed the lives of three UPSC aspirants in the national capital, multiple factors drive up the demand for a slice of this burgeoning subterrane­an economy.

ON A muggy July day, in a swanky lawyer’s chamber, the senior summons his junior with great urgency. “Quick! Hurry, I should get an OTP,” he says, handing over his phone. The junior exits the hall, steps outside the basement of the newly built building in posh Jangpura Extension to catch the cellular network signal. As soon as he hears the familiar sound of the notificati­on, he rushes back to his senior.

Delhi’s ubiquitous basement offices — often in upscale residentia­l neighbourh­oods — are some of the most sought- after real estate spaces for ‘ profession­als’. From a young advocate just setting up her practice to silk- stocking senior advocates, from doctors to chartered accountant­s, the basement office is a preferred choice, even when they barely let in any sunshine or cell phone network. Then there is another subterrane­an world — of gymnasiums, cloud kitchens, bars and libraries, many of which are in violation of norms set by civic bodies.

A combinatio­n of factors — from how land- use regulation­s are framed to skyrocketi­ng costs for a piece of the city’s land — have allowed for a booming basement economy to take shape in the national capital.

These basement spaces have come under scrutiny given the torrential rains this season and the incident in Rajinder Nagar, where three students of a coaching centre lost their lives when they were trapped in the flooded basement library of the building.

What the rules say

The Unified Building ByeLaws, 1983, and the Master Plan Delhi, govern the regulatory landscape for basements. These bye- laws prescribe what activities are allowed in Delhi’s colonies ( which are categorise­d into eight zones based on circle area rate) and whether they are designated for residentia­l, commercial or mixed use.

In category A and B colonies, only ‘ profession­al activities’ are allowed in residences. The Master Plan defines these activities as those involving services based on profession­al skills such as doctors, lawyers, architects, chartered accountant­s, company secretarie­s, cost and works accountant­s, engineers, town planners, media profession­als and documentar­y film makers, and management profession­als.

In 2016, dietician/ nutritioni­sts were added to this list.

The ritzy, much- sought- after locations for lawyers — Golf Links, Sundar Nagar, Nizamuddin East, Maharani Bagh and Defence Colony — fall in these categories.

In 2008, an amendment was made to the Master Plan to specifical­ly allow ‘ profession­al activity’ in basements.

“Profession­al activity in basements is permissibl­e in plotted developmen­t, subject to relevant provisions of Building Bye- Laws, structural safety norms and fire safety clearance. In case the use of basement for profession­al activity leads to exceeding the permissibl­e FAR ( Floor Area Ratio) on the plot, such FAR in excess shall be used subject to payment of appropriat­e charges prescribed with approval of Government,” the provision reads.

Additional­ly, a 2011 order by the Municipal Corporatio­n of Delhi ( MCD) opened up more of these undergroun­d workspaces for them. The MCD order mandated the inclusion of a dedicated floor for parking in all proposals for the redevelopm­ent of individual residentia­l plots. While this was intended to solve the problem of people parking on roads, these floors instead began to be used for reasons other than parking.

“Even if residents have to park on the streets, these spaces are used as servant quarters or rented out as office space. The rent typically covers the building’s maintenanc­e costs and pays for the security guard and other staff,” says Shreya Jain, a flat- owner in one of the ‘ builder floor’ units in South Delhi.

Another reason why basements and barsaatis ( single room sets on rooftops, often constructe­d without permits) are popular concepts in Delhi is because of the vertical limit for constructi­on. Until December 2022, the Master Plan only allowed buildings to be 15 metres high. After the Supreme Court interventi­on, this was raised by the Delhi Developmen­t Authority ( DDA) to 17.5 metres with stilts.

However, as per DDA rules, the basement is not to be counted in FAR in residentia­l units if used for parking, household storage and services or ‘ profession­al activity’. Additional­ly, on the number of basements a building can have, the Master Plan states “no limit, subject to adequate safety measures”.

Apart from profession­al activities, there cannot be any other use of basements. The ‘ other activities’ — gyms, diagnostic centres, gaming zones or even coaching centres — cannot run in basements, but only on other floors.

Going undergroun­d

In a small, dimly lit basement in Kalkaji, several pool tables of varying sizes stand scattered across the room. In the background, a Salman Khan movie plays on the projector. The pool hall is empty except for a lone caretaker wiping down the tables, readying them for the after-office crowd that will come in the evening. “I paid around Rs 1- 1.5 crore two years ago for this place,” says the owner of the snooker house. “We generally get more customers on the weekend, who stay for longer hours,” says the caretaker.

From the outside, not many would suspect a pool cafe behind the entry door. The only thing that gives it away is an LED board with a running scroll reading ‘ Billiards, Snooker, Pool’. It is one of many basement businesses that flourish in Delhi.

Basements are useful for residents in more ways than one, with cost an overriding factor.

Shamsher Singh, an advocate who works out of a basement office in East Nizamuddin, says, “If I want an office that’s close to the courts and accessible to my clients, and something that’s within a budget, a basement in a residentia­l unit is my only choice. Central Delhi is one of the most expensive real estate markets so what do you do?”

According to a property dealer, the rental rates for a basement measuring around 90 0 square yards in a newly constructe­d building in Defence Colony is Rs 2.5 lakh, with the price going up to Rs 3.5 lakh for the ground and first floors, Rs 3 lakh for the second floor and between Rs 4 and 4.5 lakh for fourth floor and above. The buying rate for a basement space in the same area is around Rs 16 crore, while a first- floor space would cost around Rs 13 crore.

Ten years ago, when Pritam Pal and his brother Gautam decided to start a jewellery business on the Kalkaji main road, a basement space was an obvious choice. For one, the price was considerab­ly cheaper than abovegroun­d real estate. “The Airtel shop one floor above ours pays a rent of around Rs 60,000 a month and it’s not even that big,” explains Pritam Pal. “We bought this shop for around Rs 1 crore. I think market rates for a basement like this has gone up to Rs 3- 4 crore now.”

But basement workspaces come with their own set of problems. “We can’t lay a single brick here without the MCD or police showing up at our doorstep. Yet, when we raise complaints about waterloggi­ng or lack of parking for our customers, they are nowhere to be seen. We paid Rs 36,000 for a parking space, but our customers still don’t have any place to park when they come to our shop,” says Gautam Pal.

Despite paying around Rs 55,0 0 0 a month as rent, legal practition­er Pawas Kulshresth­a was aghast when his swanky Defence Colony basement office was flooded during heavy rain on July 28. “I think almost all the lawyer chambers on this stretch were completely flooded. In some chambers, you couldn’t even see beyond the first step ( of the staircase),” he says. Kulshresth­a’s office bears signs of the deluge. The white walls are now damp and bear seepage stains. “Until recently, all our paperwork was laid out near the reception to dry,” he adds.

According to a shop owner in Greater Kailash- I, who requested not to be named, the area’s ‘ basement culture’ changed after the MCD sealed 77 basement shops in 2006. “M Block market was well- known for its apparel shops that attracted a huge number of customers. The MCD’S monitoring committee at that time sealed most basement shops here citing one reason or another and it was only after a High Court order in February 2009 that shops were unsealed,” he says. However, by then, customers moved on to other shopping hubs.

Misha Chandra, a young lawyer who works with a senior advocate in a well- decorated basement office in Vasant Kunj, can’t wait to work in a ‘ real office’. “I know everyone has a basement, but when I have to work from the office the whole day, it is really disorienti­ng. It’s sunny when I step in and very dark when I step out but I have no sense of how the day is changing from inside. There’s no window or absolutely any sunlight,” she said.