How Budget 2012 can ensure fair play for realty

With the Union Budget coming closer, many experts are pulling up their wish lists and asking for goodies from the government which they believe will help strengthen their respective sector. Brotin Banerjee, managing director and CEO, Tata Housing,  also has his own wish list  as he wants the government to focus on strengthening the real estate sector. [caption id=“attachment_220366” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Reuters”] [/caption] The government needs to focus on the real estate sector as the construction sector is the second-largest employer, next only to  agriculture. Growth in this sector has a direct impact on the ancillary industries like steel and cement and it creates a ripple effect in the market and helps push the economy, said Brotin Banerjee,  to Business Standard. He also believes that there  is a strong need to set up a real estate regulator to ensure fair play and transparency in the industry and protect consumer interests. The main idea is to create a level-playing field. Here are some key points from t he article •The real estate sector must be environmentally conscious as it currently contributes to five percent of global carbon emission. In order to address this issue, the government must provide appropriate subsidies to builders and help lower carbon emissions. •Integrated townships are the way forward for Indian developers as it helps to reduce the pressure on city infrastructure. •Also there is a need to extend tax holiday under Section 80IB for integrated township development as this section gives tax relief to the builders for construction of integrated townships. This helps in the development of infrastructure around the metros and Tier-1 cities and reduces the demand-supply gap for affordable housing. •Lowering and standardizing the stamp duty and reducing transaction burden are some initiatives that could benefit developers and consumers. Read the rest of the Business Standard article here.