kolkata the citys posh addresses alipore and ballygunge figure in the 20 most soughtafter residential neighbourhoods in the country sharing space with the likes of mumbais worli lutyens delhi chennais poes garden banjara hills in hyderabad and sadashivnagar in bengaluru according to ashwinder raj singh ceoresidential services of international realtor firm jones lang lasalle alipore and ballygunge continue to be the mostdesirable locations for the whoswho of kolkata and have held their own despite the emergence of new pockets where the nouveau rich are buying up luxury homes alipore and ballygunge are among the 20 submarkets that are preferred upmarket residential hotspots in the top cities of india these locations offer lifestyle status and pincode value which high networth individuals want to be associated with said singh alipore has for nearly seven decades been kolkatas most notable upmarket residential neighbourhood and home to top industrialists like the goenkas birlas mittals singhanias and bangurs their families reside in sprawling bungalows behind high walls with land parcels extremely scarce in the neighbourhood even money does not guarantee ownership of an exclusive address the godrej group has seized the opportunity and is developing a 1acre project where the highest priced apartment is rs 85 crore ballygunge too has projects where apartments are priced rs 8 crore and of course the most famous address in town birla park sanjay jhunjhunwala of mani group that has developed multiple premium projects in this neighbourhood says ballygunge rose to prominence in the mid1940s when the wealthy moved in after central avenue and mg road became congested alipore he reckons became a bluechip address only around the mid1960s according to surekha behani md of the kolkata office of jll india while alipore has snob value ballygunge is the more coveted locality convenience quality lifestyle and connectivity are the main factors that make ballygunge one of the best living areas in south kolkata ballygunge is a selfsustained neighbourhood the buyer profile of this locality is heavily inclined towards the hnis and nris who desire a high lifestyle quotient she said the going real estate price in both ballygunge and alipore is rs 1500022000sq ft comparable to greater kailash in delhi and boat club road in chennai only worli bandra and lower parel in mumbai poes garden in chennai and sadashivnagar in bengaluru command higher prices but will the twin localities remain premium forever pradeep sureka past president of the bengal chapter of confederation of real estate association of india says it is inevitable that newer areas will emerge and overshadow ballygunge and alipore in the early years of 20th century central avenue was the champslyses the celebrated avenue in paris the grand mansions on either side are testimony to the glorious past after that came ballygunge and alipore i believe the fulcrum is now shifting to the next posh locality em bypass said sureka premium projects along this corridor particularly near science city are commanding rs 1500017000sq ft mumbai worli rs 3500060000 bandra rs 3000055000 lower parel rs