Thread by @Secretary_MoHUA

Addressed the Virtual Conference on Real Estate Resurgence of @FollowCII. Lockdown to curtail spread of Covid-19 has impacted all sectors adversely including real estate. Reverse migration of construction labour & break in supply of materials, have disrupted works considerably.

On Ministry’s Advise, RERA of 27 States/UTs have revised timelines of registered projects by 6/9 months automatically as force majeure. Also, States/ Agencies have extended validity of various approvals/ clearances by one year.

RBI has recently provided 6 months moratorium to all loans. All these steps will save projects from getting stalled/ stressed, obviate unnecessary litigations, and ensure timely delivery of houses with new milestones to homebuyers- a win-win for all, specially the homebuyers.

Congratulations to CII for organising a timely discussion on Resurgence of the Sector. Government has taken various steps in last 6 years to rejuvenate the sector. This includes RERA, a transformative legislation to bring transparency, accountability & credibility in the sector.

Ease of Doing Business in Construction Permits, where India has jumped 159 places in last 4 years in World Bank Ranking, implementation of Online Building Permission in 2,056 cities & all cities of 14 States/UTs is major relief. It will be extended to all 4,350+cities by Mar 2021

Various majors have been taken like direct/indirect tax reliefs, improved liquidity via Affordable Housing Fund, National Urban Housing Fund, Last Mile Fund, relaxation in ECB norms for HFCs, Special Fund in NHB, increased Home Loan limit for Govt employees & #HousingForAll.

With over 1.05 cr sanctioned houses, over 65 lakhs grounded and over 35 lakhs completed with toilet, drinking water, gas, electricity etc and handed over to beneficiaries, has led to huge employment generation and boost in demand of many industries specially cement & steel.

In last 5 years construction sector has increased labour absorption from 4 to 5.5 cr ie additional 1.5 cr. demand. With government policies, there is huge scope in investment in affordable housing, where lies assessed gap in demand.

Govt is actively considering Model Tenancy Act for circulation to States/ UTs to legislate another transformative law, which will open up Rental Sector in Housing, Commercial & Institutional real estate in a big way.

Affordable Rental Housing Complexes was announced by Hon’ble FM as part of #AtmaNirbharBharat. Ministry will soon launch the scheme. That will open up a new scope in real estate investment to cater to requirement of urban migrants/ poor, which will provide them dignified living.

It will also improve their ease in living and productivity.
I admire CII for taking up positive deliberation to make the best out of government policies & encourage real estate industry to be active participant in AtmaNirbhar Bharat on its journey from 3 to 5 trillion $ economy.

Meeting upcoming demand using technology with speed, skill & scale will crop win-win-win for all!