Pune: CREDAI -Pune Metro has said that the decreased residency limit from 180 days to 120 days will encourage the Non Resident Indians (NRIs) to invest in real estate and hence leading to more investments in this sector.
Suhas Merchant, CREDAI-Pune Metro
CREDAI-Pune Metro President Suhas Merchant said, “It’s a very good budget as the time limit for reopening of I-T assessment has been halved to 3 years from 6 years and also it has proposed to exempt senior citizens who are 75 years or above who do not have business income from filing IT returns.”
“Also, there will be no double taxation for NRIs and a decrease in residency limit from 182 days to 120 days may encourage NRIs to invest in Real Estate leading to higher investments in the sector. In the situation of the pandemic, there was a fear of a hike in taxes and cess, which did not happen and that is a very positive step from the finance ministry. So overall the budget is satisfactory,” Merchant added.
Satish Magar, President, CREDAI
CREDAI National President Satish Magar said, “Section 80IBA for affordable housing has been extended by one year, which was expected due to the pandemic situation.”
“Also scrapping of duties on steel may reduce the steel prices, which will help in keeping the overall housing prices intact. With the hike in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in insurance to 74 percent, there will be more liquidity in the market,” Magar added.
Shantilal Kataria, Vice President, CREDAI
CREDAI National Vice President Shantilal Kataria said, “The focus on the Prime Minister’s Housing Scheme and affordable and rental housing projects is the need of the hour in this year’s budget as in this bracket about 90 percent of the population will get covered in the country.”
“Also, the extension of Section 80IBA by one year under which Rs. 1.50 lakhs additional deduction is available is now extended to March 31, 2022 on the background of the pandemic situation. This was the demand from CREDAI and therefore we welcome the budget and are thankful to the finance ministry,” Kataria added.
Vishal Gokhale, CMD, Gokhale Constructions
Gokhale Constructions Chairman Vishal Gokhale said, “It was expected that the budget will emphasize healthcare and infrastructure, however considering the contribution of the Real Estate sector to the economy and job creation, some relief was expected, which was completely missing in the budget. Hope certain steps in the budget will improve the economic conditions.”
Sachin Kulkarni, Managing Director, Vastushodh Projects
Vastushodh Projects Managing Director Sachin Kulkarni said, “Though the budget looks good on the overall economic improvement, it was disappointing for the Real Estate sector. Some long pending demands of the sector were expected to be addressed in this budget that could have helped the ailing Real Estate industry in the current situation, which did not happen.”
Krishna Kumar Goyal, Kohinoor Group
Kohinoor Group Chairman and Managing Director Krishna Kumar Goyal said, “Given the current state of the economy against the backdrop of the pandemic, the Finance Minister has taken the right steps to revive the economy. It is important that the National Faceless IT Tribunal brings transparency in income tax claims.”
“The housing sector will benefit from the absence of double taxation for NRIs and a reduction in the length of stay in the country. The additional tax deduction of Rs 1.5 lakh on affordable housing will be extended till March 31, 2022. The period of revision of income tax returns has been reduced from six years to three years, which will benefit all taxpayers. We had demanded that the definition of affordable housing be changed from Rs 45 lakh to Rs 75 lakh in view of rising inflation, but no concrete announcement was made,” Goyal added.
H P Srivastava, Deccan Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture
Meanwhile, Deccan Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture (DCCIA) H P Srivastava said, “During these unprecedented challenging times when the entire world is battling with the pandemic, this is a balanced and growth-oriented budget, notwithstanding the higher fiscal deficit, which is targeted to be brought down to over 4 per cent by 2026. The major emphasis laid on the health care and infrastructure sectors is the need of the hour. Also doubling of MSME allocation to Rs. 15,700 crore will surely help the medium and small enterprises.”
“On the direct tax side, though the individual taxpayers are disappointed, ease in compliance is a welcome move. The announcement regarding one-person companies with no restriction on paid-up capital and turnover and proposal to place a revised custom duty structure free of any distortions are also steps in the right direction. We genuinely hope that the newly introduced Agriculture, Infrastructure and Development Cess, the details of which are awaited, will not result in any adverse impact for the industry,” Srivastava stated.