Ficci suggests support measures for housing sector in Budget

Housing and construction sectors have forward and backward linkages and impact nearly 200 sectors, it said

Industry chamber Ficci on Wednesday suggested the government to provide an interest subsidy of 3-4 per cent on housing loans and extend the concessional tax rate of 15 per cent to companies that invest in green technologies, in the forthcoming Budget.

Housing and construction sectors have forward and backward linkages and impact nearly 200 sectors and it needs to be provided holistic support in the upcoming Union Budget, it said.

"An interest subsidy of 3-4 per cent on housing loans could also be offered for a period of 3-4 years.

"Extend a concessional tax rate of 15 per cent to companies that invest in green technologies on or after a specified date and also allow full deduction towards investment/ purchase of green technology assets," it added.

It also recommended for the government to subsidise the usage of 6 -7 cylinders in a year to poor households; increasing collateral-free loans under CGTMSE (Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises ) from the existing Rs 2 crore to up to Rs 5 crore. It also suggested the extension of the sunset date for newly incorporated domestic companies to commence their manufacturing till March 31, 2025.

"Due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the setting up of manufacturing facilities/ production plans, regulatory approvals, resource planning, etc (which typically takes a considerable amount of time) within the sunset date of March 31, 2023, has become difficult," it said.