Mangesh Wadaje (CEO & Director at Highbar Technocrat Limited
“As India is spearheading its march onto becoming a dominant economy, India has a long-standing need to develop world-class infrastructure. Fast-tracking infrastructure projects will give much-needed impetus for job creation and economic growth in the post-COVID world.
We expect forthcoming budget to thrust on the infrastructure development measures and to facilitate the spur on technologies enabling fast tracking of ongoing and planned infrastructure projects. We are hopeful that this year’s budget will provide further opportunities for innovative MSME IT sector to participate in infrastructure projects.”
Anshul Singhal, Managing Director, Welspun One Logistics Parks:
“The government has given a tremendous push to the warehousing sector through systematic reforms like implementation of the GST, accordance of infrastructure status to the sector, and mooting the National Logistics Policy. Demand for Grade-A warehousing is expected to increase consistently. Further incentives towards private and institutional investment in warehousing and logistics parks through tax benefits, streamlined compliance and strengthening last-mile connectivity via support infrastructures like roadways, interstate transport, and factory-to-port facilities, will greatly benefit the sector’s growth. These steps will not only generate employment but will significantly reduce logistics costs, which currently makes up about 14% of the GDP. Investment in Automation and AI can also be encouraged, as this will enable the flow of private long-term capital into the sector.”
Sanjay Dutt, MD & CEO, Tata Realty and Infrastructure Limited
“Set against the backdrop of the pandemic, Budget 2021 will be crucial in determining the long-term growth of every sector. In order to truly revive the economy, we hope that the Government is able to efficiently implement Covid-19 vaccination, stimulate demand and accelerate job creation related initiatives and continue the thrust on infrastructure development. While last year’s budget certainly had some highpoints, it unfortunately did not address numerous issues that the real estate sector has been facing for a while. With the government trying to revive the sector through initiatives like maintaining an accommodative stance on repo rate, six-month moratorium on EMIs, SWAMIH fund, stamp duty reductions in Maharashtra and stimulus 3.0 package, we sincerely hope that Budget 2021 too brings some much-needed relief to homebuyers as well as developers. As the sector’s growth relies heavily on the upcoming financial amendments, we look forward to measures for course correction, like granting industry status to the real estate sector and a single-window clearance mechanism for faster completion of projects. One GST, One or No Stamp Duty regime and reduction in registration charges across States are some of the other recommendations which will make a significant difference to the cost of a project and will definitely encourage home buyers to invest. RERA implementation should also be given more emphasis to protect the interest of all stake holders.
The sector has been stressed for the past few years; the pandemic surely aggravated the problems but now there are some green shoots of recovery visible. Promoting growth of the sector could have a multiplier impact on the economy. For this to happen, we anticipate reforms for affordable housing, joint development and encouragement of foreign investment in completed residential properties. Another major problem that we hope be addressed is liquidity in real estate, For Eg. REITs are a viable solution since they enable investors to diversify their portfolio. Increasing the deduction for interest on housing loan to at least Rs 5 lakh and GST waiver for under-construction homes would also help tremendously in boosting the demand in the sector and attract potential buyers. “
Chintan Sheth, Director, Ashwin Sheth Group
Budget 2021 will be crucial for the real estate sector with a series of developments across industries. The real estate sector faced multiple challenges due to reverse migration, stoppage of work, travel restrictions and less disposable income with potential buyers. However, the recovery has been a positive one, to say the least with profitable sales growth in the residential front due to the festive season, attractive schemes, and the consumers’ assertive outlook to restart looking for homes. Moreover, government reforms like reduction in stamp duty, the extension of the project completion deadline, RBI Monetary Policy Committee’s decision to extend the co-lending scheme for NBFCs and HFCs led the industry on the path of recovery and boosted market sentiment further.
We are optimistic about the amendments and wish the budget addresses some of the critical issues, such as:
· Speeding up infrastructure development to improve connectivity to various emerging micro-markets.
· GST waiver on under-construction projects for under-construction residential development
· Ease in the cash flow and capital generation options that will support the developers to complete the construction working in time