Roopak Sitaraman’s The Whistleblowers throws light on the nexus between real estate majors and finance industry and explains how it damages the ecosystem. The author spoke to Trisha Mukherjee
With the unprecendented boom in the real estate sector, skyscrapers have become a norm, especially in the outskirts of big cities. But in its backdrop, there’s also rise in the irregularities and fraudulences with the people who are dealing with giant real estate groups. Everyday, we come across news of legal courts settling down the residential issues. With people having to deal with a finance company or a developer at some point or the other. Roopak Sitaraman’s new book The Whistleblowers (Westland) reveals the quest to expose the deception and corruption in a dramatic thriller very close to a real life drama.
Having worked in the real estate and finance industries for more than 20 years, he is familiar with, and understands the intricacies involved. His book seeks to make things easier and help people understand the modus operandi of the industry. “These industries are not just exciting in terms of how they operate but are also relevant in the current times since there’s a boom in real estate. The relevance for the commoner was the key driver for writing this book,” said Sitaraman.
The Whistleblowers throws light on the underbelly facts of an unholy nexus between the real-estate and finance industry and explains how that nexus damages the ecosystem. Inspired from real life incidents where illegal floors have been built, and developers have started construction without the required approvals, this book is a representation of what happens in the real estate industry. For instance, 102 illegal flats across seven high rises, which were discovered in the Campa Cola Compound in Mumbai’s Worli area, have been under fire.
“What is narrated in the story has been happening at several places. Developers build unauthorised stories and customers suffer. There are many instances involving reputed builders that do not come to light. The issues of irregularities in a building can crop up anytime in future, as in the case of Campa Cola society in Mumbai that came up after so many years. This is one of the contexts of the story,” the author said.
The developers, who enjoy a dominant position with respect to their customers, have more than often taken the legal and statutory systems for granted. “It is the thought that one can get away with anything that forms the genesis of scams in these industries,” he said.
The relentless competitive pressures on finance companies, unrealistic expectations of company stakeholders and the need for individuals to relentlessly perform in the face of multiple challenges at work only add to the corruption.
The Whistleblowers, the author said, “is written in dedication to all those who face day-to-day conflicts between their own ethical values and their professional mandate that they are forced to work on in their professions. But, somehow they manage to pull on.”
While the author wants the readers to have an intense experience of reading a fast-paced thriller, he wants them to gain valuable and interesting insights into the operation of such industries. “While taking a loan for buying property, I hope my readers will be able to apply the knowledge that they have gained through the book, in a practical situation,” he said.