Satish Magar, President of Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (CREDAI - National), said that one of the biggest challenges the real estate sector will face is to migrate the workers back on the construction sites once the lockdown is lifted.

“Although the government has given the directive to gradually begin work on construction sites, activities at many areas are expected to resume once the necessary permission are obtained. Developers will have to ensure the necessary health and safety measures of workers along with providing shelter and basic amenities,” he said in an email interview with BusinessLine .

He added, “ We will also have to ensure smooth supply of raw materials at the sites, acknowledging the safety measure at each end, to further avoid delay in project completion. The government will also have to intervene to ensure no price hike in steel and cement industry occurs, to ensure affordability of houses in the coming time.”

Magar said the current crisis along with nationwide lockdown has to a great extent slowed the growth meter of the realty sector. A major impact is seen through the declining housing sales, which is projected to remain the same until May as of now. Another setback for the industry are the delay in submission of the projects that will further impact the overall percentage of housing sales.

“As an apex body, CREDAI has proposed various measures to the government and other relevant stakeholders that will help kick-start the sector. Measures such as one-time restructuring of loans, provision of fiscal and non-fiscal relaxation, reduction in stamp duty are in pipeline that may see government’s intervention soon,” he said.

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