The building sector in Pune and neighbouring areas is in terrible straits. The mass exodus of migrant workers from UP and Bihar, following alleged threats from Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, has forced builders to invoke the force majeure clause to escape liabilities of delays and cost overruns. 
With the labour rates in the building industry almost trembling due to insufficient workers and absence of skilled employees, buyers will have to shell out more for their flats. Kumar Gera, chairman, Gera Developers, said, “We have informed our customers that there will be a delay in the delivery of flats due to this force majeure situation”. Further Mr. Gera said, “We can’t say when the sub-contractor’s labour will be back and when normalcy will return or when flats will be ready”. He added, “The number of laborers on our project sites has come down from 2,300 to 1,400 now. This has resulted in a 75% slowdown in construction”. Mr. Gera is also the founder chairman of the Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India.
Kumar Builders chairman and president of the Promoters and Builders Association of Pune (PBAP), Mr. Lalit Kumar Jain said that the labour rates have shot up by 250% to Rs 750 a day. This means that it is only a matter of time before prices of residential properties go up as builders pass on this hike to the buyers.
Mr Jain said, “We believe that 50% of labourers have gone back and labour rates have surged from Rs 350 a day to Rs 750. We are not even sure if the labourers will come back”. He added that builders have sent people to Bihar and UP to try and force the labourers to return to work, but the response so far has been poor. Further he said, “The Builders Association will wait till the end of March and assess the situation. The members will then take a decision on informing their customers about the possible rate hike”.