CREDAI President Mr. Lalit Kumar Jain |
The Finance Minister has miserably failed in highlighting the importance the role of Housing in economy, employment generation, apart from the very need of housing. “The announcements on ECB for affordable housing is a minor respite but still meaningless,” Mr Jain, who is also CMD of Mumbai-Pune realty developer Kumar Urban development Limited (KUL), said.
The housing industry, Mr Jain said expected a big boost from the budget for affordable housing through special schemes, an interest subvention of 5 to 7% for LIG (Lower Income Group) and EWS (Economically Weaker Sections) housing & promotion of rental housing through tax exemption. But it is said that none of these measures were taken note of.
He lamented at the Finance Minister’s neglect of real estate sector despite its contribution of 6.5% to the GDP.
Mr. Jain pointed out that the interest subsidy on home loans is not enough and cannot help either the EWS of the LIG segment.
In view of absence of any clear cut steps addressing the realty sector, he expressed the fear that the cost of housing will go up. Real Estate sector also faces a grave risk of drying up of liquidity and here again the Finance Minister has not done anything thing to mitigate the crisis.
Mr. Jain felt that the exemption of capital gains tax to invest in SME (Small and Medium enterprise) may result in cash flows out of real estate.
He also said “We definitely expected huge impetus to affordable housing sector which is a dire need from the government’s own sated objective of providing shelter for all and as a measure to boost the economy".
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