The Hindu Business Line : States told to cut stamp duty on land transactions

Delivering the valedictory address at a conference on "Emerging trends and opportunities in South India's real estate sector" organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry, he urged the State governments to reduce stamp duty on land transactions to at least 5 per cent. West Bengal had reduced the duty to 6 per cent from 10 per cent and others should also fall in line.

States should not be apprehensive of losing money since the increase in land value would compensate them. They should be facilitators in developing townships rather than getting into the real estate business. "There is no business for governments to be in real estate," he said.

Over Rs 1 lakh crore would be spent in the next six years on urban development, under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. The Union Government would spend around Rs 50,000 crore on urban development and State governments would raise the balance, the Minister said.

Mr Reddy said urbanisation was a by-product of industrialisation and more number of people would migrate to urban areas. At present, 30 per cent of India's population live in urban areas, and this figure is likely to increase to nearly 50 per cent in the next 20 years.

Mr Reddy said providing drinking water, sewerage and drainage facilities were top priorities under the mission.

Public transport system

Public transport system was a focus area under the programme. The Union Government would provide funds to bridge the "viability gap" for public transport systems — which mostly would be through public-private-partnership. "We are also trying to get more funds outside the urban mission for public transport systems," he said.

Viability gap is a one-time or deferred grant for infrastructure projects that may have long gestation periods and limited financial returns, so that their viability may be improved through Government support.

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