Apartment culture knocks on Doaba’s door
Time-share, serviced and cluster concepts are much in demand in this NRI-rich belt, notices Anuradha Shukla
If rows of vacant kothis, owned by NRIs, is your first impression about the heart of Doaba, get ready to notice the change. NRIs as well as the elite are now opting for apartments. No more prolonged lawsuits with relatives and occupants, who refuse to vacate houses, and no more estate upkeep.

Advance tax payments by realty firms surge 
Advance tax payments by cement, realty and financial services companies were up by 30 per cent thereby reflecting better showing while telecom and automobile firms’ payments for the second quarter this fiscal fell substantially.

Pathankot land cost goes up
Civil airport has jacked up the realty rates, says Bharat Bhushan Dogra
Rates of properties, including prime land banks that may, in future, transform into commercial multiplexes, have been on a rise on the Pathankot-Dalhousie-Jalandhar-Amritsar road. Ordinary residential plots are also going out of the range of the common man fetching more than double the price prevalent a year ago.This all has been due to the fast development of the city, which has added two new feathers to its cap — one the Mamun cantonment and the other, a new airport.

HOME DECOR
Lend colour to walls
Devendra Malik talks about trendy painting techniques
Painting is one of the easiest and the least expensive ways to change a dull, boring house into a bright, clean one. Painting, as such, is the smallest part of the job. Preparation of the walls for the same is be the biggest errand. If possible start with an empty room or try to remove as many obstacles as possible. Cover all surfaces that will not be painted. Finally put down a few thick sections of newspapers, or a heavy-duty drop cloth to protect the floor.

TAX tips
Simple FD no substitute for capital gains account
By S.C. Vasudeva
Q. I had a residential plot, which was purchased during 1984-85 and was sold during accounting year 2004-05. Amount received could not be deposited in the capital gains account with the bank and capital gain tax was not given. However, the whole of the amount was deposited in the bank as FD. This amount was withdrawn and a residential plot was purchased during accounting year 2005-06, which is within two years. Now my question is whether any action can be taken for not making payment of capital gains tax, particularly considering that the whole of the amount was spent for purchasing a residential plot within two years even though it was not deposited in the capital gain account before filing of the return.

GREEN HOUSE
Container as important as content
Satish Narula discusses merits and demerits of plastic, earthen and cement pots
There are wide ranges of plants that are well known and are common. Those gardening enthusiasts who are always on a look out for a new introduction are continuously on the job of exploration. The reason is to have an edge and get the attention of a visitor. However, there are other ways.