Commercial Real Estate Driving Growth, Development Across Cities, Notes CII Conference

New Delhi, November 1, 2025: A CII Conference on the Evolving Landscape of Indian Real Estate: CRE Unlocking Investments, Opportunities & Economic Growth has highlighted that commercial real estate is driving jobs, investments, and innovation across cities, contributing directly to India’s $5-trillion economic ambition.

Urbanised India’s next phase of growth will depend on how the country plans and governs its expanding cityscapes. Speaking at the conference, NITI Aayog Programme Director Anna Roy called for a shift from a city-centric approach to a “city-region” model integrating infrastructure, economy, and livability. “If we plan only for cities, urban sprawl is inevitable. We need to think in terms of city regions and growth hubs that connect surrounding districts to avoid overburdening existing cities and unlock new economic opportunities. NITI Aayog has developed a city-region framework built around four pillars -regional lens, economic anchors, aspirational goals and sustainability,” she said.

Policymakers highlighted that building aspirational cities capable of attracting global talent will be crucial to sustaining this momentum, “We must create cities so attractive that people aspiring to work in Singapore or London would want to work in India. Identifying regional growth drivers and planning with an economic and aspirational lens for the next 25 years will be key,” Roy added.

Neel Raheja, Chairman, CII National Committee on Real Estate & Housing and Group President, K Raheja Corp, underscored the need to balance growth with livability. “Livable cities and quality of life must remain central to India’s real estate agenda. While India today offers the largest office market in the world, the future lies equally in building student housing, global campuses, hospitals, data centres, GCCs, and senior living ecosystems that define an inclusive and aspirational urban India,” he noted.

Sriram Khattar, Co-Chair, CII National Committee on Real Estate & Housing, and Vice Chairman & MD, DLF Cyber City Developers noted, the residential real estate market currently valued at INR 340 billion is expected to reach INR 640 billion by 2030, reflecting robust sectoral expansion.

Anand Kumar, Chairman, Real Estate Regulatory Authority, NCT of Delhi, emphasised the importance of ethics and transparency. “The future of India’s real estate sector depends on honesty, transparency, and accountability among all stakeholders. With reforms like RERA, the sector is becoming more efficient and trustworthy, laying the foundation for sustainable growth,” he said.

The real estate sector is the second-largest employment provider and a cornerstone of India’s economic growth. Transparency, accountability, and regulatory predictability will be crucial to sustaining investor confidence and ensuring responsible urbanisation.

Aspirational Workforce and flexible workspaces are redefining growth noted, Neetish Sarda, Managing Director and Founder, Smartworks. He highlighted that India’s young, skilled, and tech-driven workforce is reshaping the commercial real estate landscape. “India’s unmatched talent pool and scalability make it a preferred global destination for capability centres and enterprise expansion. Flexible workspaces enable rapid, seamless growth across cities while offering a consistent, high-quality employee experience,” Sarda said.

Gulam Zia, Senior Executive Director, Knight Frank India, added that commercial real estate will continue to act as India’s growth engine. Vipin Malik, Senior Vice President, Brookfield Properties, observed: “The real estate industry is undergoing a paradigm shift. Clients now demand greater flexibility, speed, and scalability. Developers are adapting and innovating rapidly to meet evolving expectations in a more capital-intensive environment.”

The CII–Knight Frank Report on Commercial Real Estate 2025 was launched at the event. The report projects India’s REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) market to nearly double to INR 16 trillion by 2030, driven by robust growth in office, retail, and warehousing segments, and the rapid expansion of flexible workspaces expected to rise over 25 per cent annually across major cities. The report notes that India’s office REITs currently cover only 15.3 per cent of total stock, with REIT-able office assets projected to increase from INR 8.2 trillion in 2025 to INR 16 trillion by 2030, reflecting deeper institutionalisation and rising global investor confidence.

Talking about the changing dynamics of retail real estate, Harsh Vardhan Bansal, Vice-Chairman, CII Delhi State and Co-Founder, Unity Buildwell said, India is witnessing the emergence of new asset classes such as Cyber-hub style complexes, which would help in optimising retail infrastructure.

Discussion on financing growth through REITs, AIFs and Reforms were also a part of the conference. The sector’s transformation presents one of India’s largest development opportunities, from housing and commercial real estate to logistics, education, and healthcare infrastructure.