Background
The formative years of Eldeco Infrastructure & Properties Ltd. (E.I.P.L) i.e. the period between 1999 and 2001 have become the subject of a Harvard Business School (HBS) case study. The case entitled "Eldeco: Playing in the Big League" picks up this period in Eldeco's history and its attempts to transform itself from a regional real estate developer to a national level player.

Case Contents
The Case specifically looks at one single allotment of land from Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) and the challenges associated with it. In this context the case gives a background of the housing market in India, the prevalent real estate scenario in Greater Noida as compared to other suburbs of Delhi, the regulatory environment in Greater Noida, and the available information to assess the viability of the project.

The case deals with the importance of the allotment to Eldeco given its corporate history. Substantial information is given on the personal history and profile of Pankaj Bajaj, Managing Director of Eldeco, in an attempt to illustrate the interface between business issues and the personal profile of the entrepreneur.

Case Objectives
Through the study of the case, students at the MBA course at HBS are taught various different aspects of real estate development:

• Demand Estimation
• Location Analysis
• Cash-flows,
• Impact of Regulatory Environment etc.

More importantly, the case seeks to illustrate many softer facets of real estate development and business in general.

• The interplay between the personality of the entrepreneur and business decisions.
• Subjective assessment of risk and reward
• Business Growth
• Transformational impact of large real estate projects on a location.

Other Information
The Case Study "Eldeco: Playing in the Big League" is taught twice in a year to MBA students at the HBS as part of a popular elective course on real estate development. The case has also been used for Design School students at Harvard University and for some Executive Programmes. The faculty is some of the most well-known names in real estate academics. Mr. Pankaj Bajaj appears as Guest in these classes for one-to-one interaction with students. A copy of the Case study can be procured from the website http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/hbsp/case_studies.jsp

The 33 acres allotment from GNIDA in subsequent years was developed by EIPL as the 2 flagship projects in Greater Noida region - Eldeco Residency Greens (11 acres) and Eldeco Green Meadows (22 acres). These projects kick-started the Real Estate boom in Greater Noida which is continuing even today.