Mantri Developers seeks Rs 400 cr from SWAMIH Fund for two more projects

Bengaluru-based property developer Mantri Developers Pvt Ltd has approached the government-sponsored Special Window for Affordable and Mid-Income Housing (SWAMIH) Investment Fund-I to extend finance up to Rs 400 crore to complete two of its stalled housing projects in Bengaluru.

The company has already secured Rs 225 crore from the SWAMIH Fund to complete its first project — Mantri Serenity — in Bengaluru. "We have already received in-principle approval from the SWAMIH Investment Fund I for two more projects -- Mantri Web City and Mantri Energia in Bengaluru and one more in Pune. We are waiting for the final approval," Sushil Mantri, CMD, Mantri Developers told DH.

In November 2019, the central government had announced a Rs 25,000-crore special window to help complete over 1,500 stressed housing projects, comprising around 4.58 lakh housing units across the country. SBICAP Ventures Ltd manages the fund.

Mantri said both the stalled projects require an estimated Rs 400 crore. Web City consists of 2,100 residential units, while Energia has 1,100 units. "The SWAMIH Fund is currently conducting due diligence for these projects," Mantri said.

Meanwhile, the construction of Mantri Serenity is nearing completion. The company is just four months away from completing it and hand over the residential units in blocks 4 and 5 to homebuyers. The construction of block 1 will be completed in another 7 months. The project is located on Kanakapura Road in Bengaluru South. Mantri Serenity project is the first beneficiary of the SWAMIH Investment Fund in Bengaluru, which is expected to help 3,000 home buyers who were affected by the financial slowdown in the realty sector.

Gokulam Shelters are the landlords of the 4 million sq. feet project, while Piramal Capital Finance is the existing lender. The project is also equipped with a clubhouse spread over 70,000 sq. feet.

Mantri said the company is also building a new mall spread over 1 million sq. feet area at the property, and it will be completed in the next 2-3 months.

Irfan Kazi, CIO of SWAMIH Fund said, "Our investment in Mantri Serenity project happened during the pandemic period in late 2020. During the second Covid wave, our focus was to complete the project and provide relief to a large base of homebuyers that have partnered with us in these efforts."

Besides Mantri Developers, the SWAMIH Fund has received applications from over a dozen other real estate builders in Bengaluru for funding, he said. “We are currently evaluating these projects. We are looking at very large projects that will take 5-6 years to complete,” Kazi said.