Builders urge Centre to set up Cement Regulatory Authority

8 January 2018

The Builders’ Association of India (BAI) has urged Government to set up Cement Regulatory Authority to control the pricing and prevent cartelisation. If the regulator is in place, the cost of house construction can be reduced to Rs 50 per sq ft making housing affordable for all, the association said.

BAI emphasised on the need for immediate reforms and regulatory mechanism for the construction sector to ensure a streamlined growth, resulting in enhanced contribution to the Indian economy in the long-term.

H N Vijaya Raghava Reddy, national president, BAI, said “BAI has identified nine core issues affecting the sector and will drive for regulations with the State and Central governments. When addressed, they will help better organise the sector, which is a major contributor to India’s GDP employing more than 35 million workers. In addition, attracting FDI to the sector and fast-tracking India’s infrastructure development will be easier.”

Elaborating on the proposed reforms and regulations, B Seenaiah, chief patron, BAI, said “The Union government has declared a Rs 65 lakh crore investment plan for development of 100 Smart Cities, new township formats such as CIDCO, DDA, MHADA, industrial corridors, power projects, dams, bridges, airports and seaports, but several issues still need to be resolved. At present, the land acquisition process has highly complex implications. We request the government to take full responsibility of land acquisition and handover the same to contractors before awarding the contracts. The contractors should not be allowed to deal directly with the landowners, as it would result in unnecessary delays.”

The subcontractors in the construction sector are still levied GST of 18 per cent which has to be reduced further. 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. “Blanket deduction will result in exaggeration of the land value,” Seenaiah pointed out.

He appealed to the government to set up a Cement Regulatory Authority to control the pricing and prevent cartelisation by cement manufacturers and unfair practices. BAI is going to organise the 28th All India Builders’ Convention from January 19- 21 at the Clarks Exotica in Bengaluru. The Convention will evolve specific recommendations to overcome the problems faced by the Builders and Contractors. The same will be presented to the Government departments, agencies at State and Central levels; institutions engaged in training, formulation of standards, codes, research and development.

Builders’ Association of India (BAI) established in 1941, is the apex body of Builders and Contractors with more than 18,000 business houses as direct members, having 170 centres across India. It has an indirect membership of more than 1,00,000 business houses, through its 100 plus affiliated associations.

Source: TELANGANA TODAY