INDORE: CENTRAL INDIA’S NEXT BIG REAL ESTATE STORY

Infrastructure, IT, GCCs, logistics and the proposed Ujjain-Indore metropolitan region are beginning to reshape where and how the city will grow

For years, Indore’s real estate story was largely a local one. The city grew because its people built businesses, destinations around an expanding economic base. Unlike some of India’s larger urban centres, it did not begin with the scale of government-backed infrastructure that transformed cities such as Ahmedabad, Bengaluru or Mumbai. That is now changing. A combination of new roads, elevated corridors, metro connectivity, industrial development, the proposed Ujjain-Indore Metropolitan Region, expanding IT and GCC activity, and rising investment from outside Madhya Pradesh is creating the conditions for Indore to move into a different league. The question is no longer whether Indore can grow. The more important question is what kind of city it will become as that growth accelerates. The answer is beginning to emerge across several fronts. The city is seeing interest in high-rise development, premium housing, plotted projects, commercial offices, flex spaces and warehousing. Corridors such as Indore Ujjain Road, Super Corridor, Indore Dewas Road and Rau-Pithampur are acquiring new significance. At the same time, the proposed metropolitan region could fundamentally change the geographical definition of Indore’s real estate market. For Ashwinder R. Singh, Co founder of BCD Royale, Chairman of the CII Real Estate Committee and Advisor to NAR-India, the very fact that entrepreneurs are entering Indore is evidence of the opportunity they see.


Generally, when most of the people are not seeing potential, and an entrepreneur is seeing that potential, then that entrepreneur generally moves ahead.


He believes the Indore of the next decade could look dramatically different. The city, he argues, already has one advantage that several established growth centres struggled to build alongside their economic expansion: infrastructure. “Bangalore grew, but there was no infrastructure. The same problem was in Ahmedabad,” he notes. Indore, in contrast, has been building its infrastructure base even as its economic and real estate ambitions have expanded.

WHY INDORE IS AT AN INFLECTION POINT

Infrastructure: Roads, bridges, metro and regional connectivity are opening new development corridors.

IT and GCCs: Madhya Pradesh’s GCC Policy 2025 targets more than 50 GCCs and over 37,000 direct jobs.

Metropolitan planning: The proposed Ujjain-Indore Metropolitan Region covers 16,000.87 sq. km across six districts.

Logistics: Indore remains a strategic warehousing node, supported by Pithampur, Dewas and the Mumbai Agra corridor.

Residential expansion: Premium plotted and residential developments are moving into emerging corridors.

Changing demand: End-users, professionals, SMEs, MNCs and GCCs are creating a broader demand base.


THE CITY THAT BUILT ITSELF

Indore’s biggest strength may be the depth of its local entrepreneurial ecosystem. Sandeep Shrivastava, President of CREDAI Indore and CEO of Classic Group, describes the city as “self-grown”. His argument is straightforward: much of the urban transformation visible today has been driven by private investment. Hotels, multi-storey buildings, malls and other commercial developments have been created largely by private players. Even the city’s transformation into one of India’s best-known clean cities has involved cooperation between citizens and the administration. The next step, he believes, is not necessarily another layer of approvals. It is speed.

We don’t want any single window approval, we don’t want anything, we just want pace of doing business.

For Shrivastava, policies are being framed and government initiatives are moving forward, but implementation needs to happen faster. If that happens, he believes Indore can move beyond its current position and compete with cities such as Bengaluru.


FROM SIX FLOORS TO HIGH-RISES

For years, a building above six floors could be treated as a high rise in Indore. Tower cranes were uncommon. Construction technology associated with large metropolitan projects had limited presence. That picture is beginning to change. Vivek M. Chugh, Director, M Chugh Group, describes the next decade as a shift from quantity to quality.

The next decade is a decade of quality, I would say, rather than the quantity.

High-rise approvals are increasing, including buildings reaching around 90 metres. More importantly, developers are beginning to believe there is a market for premium products. The appetite exists. What is still developing is the ecosystem required to build at scale. Raj Shah, Director and CFO of Hitech Projects Limited, draws a comparison with Ahmedabad. There, town planning schemes helped reorganise land, while road width and development regulations established the basis for greater building heights. In a typical town planning scheme, a portion of land is allocated for roads, drainage and public institutions, while the remaining land is returned to owners in more usable configurations. Although landowners give up a share, the resulting infrastructure can substantially increase land values. Indore already has another piece of the equation: roads. Shah points to the city’s 40-metre roads, including MR7, MR8 and MR11. In his view, the road and drainage infrastructure being developed today is comparable to the backbone required for much taller buildings. But high-rise development is not simply about permitting greater height. It requires tower cranes, concrete pumps, climbing boom placers, ready-mix concrete plants, aluminium formwork, skilled labour, steel suppliers and construction companies capable of executing projects quickly. And speed matters because real estate is fundamentally a cash-flow business. Delays increase interest costs and can undermine project economics. Ahmedabad, Shah notes, has hundreds of tower cranes operating across projects, along with extensive RMC capacity and high-rise construction technology. Indore will need to develop a similar ecosystem if it wants vertical development to become a meaningful part of its future.

We have to invest in technology. And as far as I have seen, the sales rates here are very equivalent to Ahmedabad. So with the technology, the quality and speed will increase.

The technology transfer has already begun. Shah’s company purchased its first tower crane in 2013, when 45-metre buildings were emerging. European engineers were brought in to train the team, with technology eventually transferring to Indian partners and manufacturers. Indore now needs that process to accelerate. Chugh makes a similar point. Developers have visited Pune to study aluminium formwork, tower cranes and tunnel shuttering technologies. Some Pune developers are delivering around one million sq. ft a year with these technologies while maintaining quality. For Indore, the challenge is to make such capabilities local rather than importing them project by project.

We should take such initiatives that we as a developer shouldn’t visit these cities. Our labourers here, their skill development should be in such a way that they can adopt new technology.

THE FAR QUESTION

The regulatory side of vertical development remains critical. Vivek Dammani, President, NAREDCO Madhya Pradesh Chapter and Managing Director, Vibrant Buildmore LLP, identifies one issue above all others: Floor Area Ratio.

The main issue for vertical growth is FAR. FAR is very less in our country, FAR is 1.2, 1.5. Vertical growth is not coming because of that. Infrastructure is available, but FAR is very less.

Developers and industry associations have been working with the government on the issue. The argument is that infrastructure alone cannot create vertical growth if development potential remains restricted. There is also a mismatch in some corridors. Higher FAR may be needed in areas where infrastructure can support greater density, while in some locations it is being provided where demand may not be as strong.

THE OFFICE MARKET IS ALREADY SIGNALING THE NEXT SHIFT

Residential real estate may be the most visible part of Indore’s expansion, but commercial demand could ultimately determine how large the city’s economy becomes. Sawan S. Laddha, Founder of Workie Office Spaces, Founding Member YPO MP and President TiE MP, sees a two-part office market. Around 60% of demand is local, coming from growing SMEs and Indore-based IT companies that need additional space as they expand. The other 40% is external demand, coming from MNCs, BPOs and increasingly GCCs. Indore has emerged as a significant back-office hub. Laddha estimates that around 1,000 seats a month are going into back-office demand. But the city has a product problem. Companies are looking for Grade A buildings, large floor plates, good locations, public transport, compliant buildings, parking and basic amenities. Much of the existing commercial supply consists of smaller Category B and C offices, often designed for sale rather than large-scale corporate occupation. That mismatch is beginning to cost Indore opportunities. Companies evaluating five or six cities, including Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow and Coimbatore, can decide against Indore simply because they cannot find the right building. Laddha believes the demand is there. If the right product is supplied, the city’s flex office consumption could potentially triple over the next four years.

We need Grade A assets. We need big plates. And don’t do strata sale. You make a good product. You make 1 million square feet space in Indore. Grade A assets. Complete consumption will happen.

Parking is another surprisingly important part of the equation. As salaries rise, employees increasingly own cars. An office designed for 200 employees may need parking capacity well beyond minimum regulatory requirements. For employers, the quality of the building is not simply an aesthetic consideration. It affects whether the property works operationally.

THE GCC OPPORTUNITY

The office story is closely tied to a much larger economic shift. Madhya Pradesh’s GCC Policy 2025 is designed to position the state as a global innovation hub. The policy offers incentives linked to capital expenditure, payroll, upskilling and R&D, with a dedicated implementation mechanism. Its target is ambitious: more than 50 GCCs and over 37,000 direct jobs. The policy covers IT, finance, engineering, HR and emerging technologies, with particular attention to AI and cybersecurity. The significance for Indore extends beyond the direct office demand. GCCs bring employees, salaries, housing demand, retail consumption, transport requirements and new commercial ecosystems. The state says IT exports have tripled over three years, with annual growth of 43%. More than 300 engineering colleges produce over 50,000 technical graduates annually. Madhya Pradesh also has more than 15 IT parks, five-plus SEZs and over 150 ESDM units. Indore already has Crystal IT Park and Infosys, while proposed developments such as Knowledge City and Electronics Manufacturing Cluster 2.0 could deepen the ecosystem. For Laddha, this is where the city’s next decade could become especially interesting.

GCCs are coming. They are evaluating Indore. It’s on their radar

Three or four GCCs have already entered the city, while others are evaluating it. The opportunity, he argues, is to position Indore around AI, startups and IT rather than simply as a lower-cost office destination. The economic case is equally compelling. Laddha points to Indore’s GDP growth and the city’s combination of central location, talent and affordability. But there is one missing ingredient: marketing.

A CITY THAT HAS NOT SOLD ITSELF

Indore may be one of India’s better known Tier-2 cities, but its national and global positioning remains weaker than its fundamentals suggest. Ashwinder Singh sees this as a missed opportunity.

Marketing is very weak because the 6-7 cities around Indore, actually this is one place which can become a metro.

His vision extends beyond municipal Indore. Ujjain, Mhow, the cantonment area and surrounding towns could operate as a connected urban system, much like Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula are understood collectively as a tri-city region. The infrastructure is increasingly in place: airport connectivity, bridges, dams, highways and malls. The next requirement is to communicate what the city offers. The economic argument is powerful. A professional earning Rs. 12 lakh in Bengaluru and one earning Rs. 12 lakh in Indore do not necessarily have the same quality of life. The lower cost of living in Indore can significantly increase the purchasing power of the same salary. That can influence decisions about returning home, buying a house, raising a family or establishing a business. Laddha estimates that tens of thousands of Indore-origin professionals currently working in cities such as Bengaluru, Pune and Mumbai would consider returning if sufficient employment opportunities existed. If 200 to 300 IT companies came to Indore, he argues, the city could attract 20,000 to 30,000 employees. Those employees would create demand for plots, apartments and premium residences.


THE UJJAIN-INDORE BELT TAKES CENTRE STAGE

Among the emerging corridors, Indore-Ujjain Road may have the clearest combination of infrastructure, regional connectivity and development potential. Property prices along the corridor are currently cited at around Rs. 5,500 to Rs. 6,500 per sq. ft, while a series of major infrastructure projects could reshape the belt. The proposed Indore-Ujjain Metro is expected to connect Lavkush Chouraha in Indore with Ujjain Railway Station in under 50 minutes, compared with the current journey of around two hours. The line is planned with 11 stations and a 4.5-km underground stretch, with completion targeted ahead of Simhastha Kumbh 2028. The religious event itself is expected to bring a major infrastructure push. Government investment of Rs. 18,840 crore has been allocated towards roads, bridges, riverfront development and civic infrastructure, alongside a proposed Rs. 5,000 crore Kumbh City. Together, these projects could change the investment logic of the corridor. The proposed 165-km Outer Ring Road and metropolitan planning framework add another layer by opening new development zones and reducing pressure on existing urban roads. This is why the corridor is attracting developers. Godrej Properties has acquired approximately 24 acres in Indore for premium plotted residential development, with an estimated saleable area of around 6.20 lakh sq. ft. The acquisition follows its earlier purchase of 46 acres on Indore-Ujjain Road in July 2024. Shubhashish Homes, the Rajasthan-based legacy real estate brand, is also entering Indore with a project on Ujjain Road.

THE METROPOLITAN IDEA

The most consequential development may ultimately be the proposed Ujjain-Indore Metropolitan Region. The Madhya Pradesh government has approved a proposal to develop Indore, Bhopal, Ujjain, Jabalpur and Gwalior as metropolitan areas. In the first phase, metropolitan authorities are proposed for Indore-Ujjain and Bhopal-region clusters. The proposed Ujjain-Indore Metropolitan Region is expected to cover 75.34 lakh people across six districts. Of the six districts’ combined 33,462.83 sq. km, around 16,000.87 sq. km, or 48%, is proposed to fall within the metropolitan region. The framework would cover 38 tehsils and 2,781 villages. This matters because Indore’s growth has already begun spilling beyond its formal urban boundaries.

The region’s built-up area has expanded sevenfold since 2000. Between 2001 and 2011, Indore city’s population grew around 32%, while peripheral areas grew by more than 50%.

Much of this expansion has been unplanned, with ribbon development along roads, disconnected settlements outside municipal limits and relatively weak governance in some of the fastest-growing areas. The metropolitan framework is intended to change that. Instead of treating Indore as an isolated city, the region can be planned as an interconnected economic system. Industrial corridors such as Pithampur Dhar-Mhow and Dewas-Shajapur are already supporting this evolution. The Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor adds another major economic axis. The challenge will be ensuring that urban expansion does not simply consume agricultural land without coordinated infrastructure.

LOGISTICS: THE QUIET ENGINE

Not all of Indore’s real estate opportunity will be visible in residential towers. Warehousing is already giving the city a strategic role in central India’s supply chain. Knight Frank data shows that Indore recorded 0.8 million sq. ft of warehousing transactions in 2025. The market remains measured rather than explosive, but demand is steady across manufacturing, logistics and consumption-linked sectors. The Indore-Dewas Road corridor accounted for 81% of leasing activity in 2025, while Rau-Pithampur accounted for 19%. Manufacturing remained the largest demand driver at 43%, up from 40% in 2024. Automobile, pharmaceutical and allied industrial users were particularly important. At the same time, logistics and 3PL demand rose sharply, from 14% in 2024 to 30% in 2025. This reflects a wider change in how companies manage supply chains. Manufacturers and retailers are outsourcing more logistics functions, creating demand for organised distribution platforms. Retail accounted for 7% of leasing, down from 21% in the previous year, while e-commerce fell from 13% to 4%. FMCD emerged as a new category with 7%. Grade B facilities still dominated, accounting for 76% of leasing, while Grade A facilities represented 24%. The market is therefore not yet dominated by premium institutional warehousing. Location and affordability continue to matter more than specifications. But the fundamentals are strengthening. Projects such as Adani Logistics Park, JRG Logistics Park, Empire Logipark, Lifecare Logistics Park, TVS Industrial & Logistics Parks, SAM Industries and MMLP Pithampur point towards a broader logistics ecosystem

THE INVESTOR QUESTION: GROWTH OR MATURITY?

Indore’s residential market is also going through a transition. Sumit Mantri, Secretary, CREDAI Indore and Managing Director, Shubham Group, says the city has historically attracted investors who looked for short-term price movement. New townships could see attention shift quickly from launch to launch, with investors tracking rates after one or two months. But he believes the market is now becoming more end-user driven.

The market is a bit more investor driven, but this phase that is going on right now is a user based phase.

That distinction matters. A market driven primarily by investors can experience sharp cycles. An end user market tends to be more stable because demand is connected to housing requirements rather than short-term capital parking. Mantri’s advice to buyers is equally practical: examine the developer’s delivery record. In a market where entering real estate is relatively easy, customers need to look beyond a new project’s launch and examine how many projects the group has actually completed. For developers, the challenge is to build businesses that last. Mantri’s own journey illustrates the city’s evolution. After completing his studies in 2001, he bought four 1,000-sq-ft plots for Rs. 2.5 lakh and built eight houses, with each house costing around Rs. 2.1 lakh. Between 2001 and 2005, he built 125 houses. His group has since delivered around 42 lakh sq. ft. For him, Indore’s potential is personal as well as commercial. He believes the city’s real estate business could become 20, 25 or even 30 times its current scale over the next decade.