Builders’ Association of India (BAI) has identified nine core issues affecting the sector, said HN Vijaya Raghava Reddy, National President, BAI.
“When these issues are addressed, it will help better organise the sector, which employs more than 35 million workers,” he said.
SuggestionsReddy has made the following suggestions: Single window for environment and forest clearance. GST on construction and real estate industry. Easing procedures for land acquisition. Curbs on cartelisation by cement manufacturers. Unfair contract conditions in tenders. Mobilising Labour Welfare Cess collected for skill upgradation of construction workers. Rationalisation of labour laws applicable to construction industry and simplified norms for bank loans.
BAI is to hold its 28th All India Builders’ Convention in Bengaluru from January 19-21.
Elaborating on the proposed reforms and regulations, B Seenaiah former president and chief patron, BAI, said, “The Union government has declared a ₹65 lakh crore investment plan for development of 100 smart cities, new township formats like CIDCO, DDA, MHADA, industrial corridor, power projects, dams, bridges, airports and seaports, but several issues still need to be resolved.”
Land acquisition“At present, the land acquisition process is cumbersome. We request the government to take full responsibility of land acquisition and hand over the same to contractors before awarding the contracts. The contractors should not be allowed to deal directly with landowners, as it would result in unnecessary delays,” he added
The subcontractors in the construction sector are still levied GST of 18 per cent which has to be reduced. Also, out of the real estate industry GST of 18 per cent, 6 per cent is regarded as land value.
Land valuation deduction under construction of complexes, should be based on actual cost of the land or should be based on value mentioned in the ready reckoner.