Beyond the Sprawl: Why Savvy Investors Are Betting on Jhajjar as NCR’s Next Growth Engine

By Mohit Kalia

Gurugram, once a symbol of an unprecedented urban explosion, is now grappling with its own success. With property prices reaching unprecedented levels and space at a premium, an effort has begun to look for the next frontier in the National Capital Region.

Could Jhajjar emerge as the one? The blueprint is based on strategic location, state government’s aggressive industrial policy, and infrastructure development that essentially replicates Gurugram’s own rise two decades ago. But more than everything, Jhajjar offers something that its western counterpart no longer can: affordability and a blank slate for planned growth.

The Engine Room: Industrial Might and Job Creation

At the heart of Jhajjar’s rise to prominence is the emergence of the city as an economic powerhouse. In the center is the Reliance Model Economic Township MET City, an 8,250-acre integrated smart city and a lot more than an industrial park; rather, a statement of intent. Already hosting global giants such as Panasonic and Denso, with over 450 brands projected to set up shop, MET City is all set to attract the largest pool of employment. AIIMS Jhajjar has also done its bit in raising the city’s stature.

What the region is seeing is not a trickle effect, but a conscious shift of investment. Gurgaon and Manesar are saturated. Jhajjar offers space, connectivity, and supportive government machinery that big-ticket industry requires.

This industrial thrust is complemented by a fast-growing warehousing and logistics industry, fuelled by the Western DFC and proximity to the KMP Expressway turning the city into an important node for e-commerce and supply chain giants, making its economy diverse beyond just IT and corporate offices.

The Arteries: A Web of Connectivity

Connectivity, as a yardstick, measures the potential of a city. Here, too, Jhajjar is fast closing the gap. The KMP Expressway has already reduced travel times to Gurugram, Manesar, and Delhi, effectively placing the district in the heart of the NCR’s economic circle. Plans are in advanced stages for a new road linking AIIMS Jhajjar to the Dwarka Expressway. Metro services from Gurugram could also be extended to Jhajjar.

Moreover, the city offers an opportunity to own rare commodity: plots. Besides, apartments are available at a significantly lower prices than comparable options across the KMP. But the state government’s Deen Dayal Jan Awas Yojna has been the masterstroke that catalysed the market. It opened the door for the middle class and first-time buyers by promoting affordable, low-density plotted development. For investors, the policy’s allowance for stilt-plus-four-floor constructions turns a plot of land into a potential source of steady rental income.

The region is seeing a new class of investor: the ones who are not speculators. Rather they are professionals from Delhi and Gurugram who understand the infrastructure timeline. They are buying land or plotted units today, banking on the industrial workforce that will need housing tomorrow. The rental yield potential is significant. Presence of planned, self-sufficient townships promise a quality life far removed from the congestion that characterizes the older cities.

The Verdict

The story’s clear: the explosive growth of Gurugram was once a bet on the future. That future is today being written a few dozen kilometres to the east. For the smart investor who missed the bus to Gurugram, Jhajjar offers a second chance-an opportunity to get into the ground floor of a region currently being purposively built for the decades ahead. The blueprint is in place, the machinery is in motion, and smart money has already begun to take notice.

The author is Senior VP, Sales and Marketing, HCBS Developments