Good Budget but allocation grossly inadequate: Hiranandani

By Niranjan Hiranandani

Direction wise, it is a good budget; the Finance Minister has covered almost all major sections of the economy in her proposals. Having said that, I would say that the amount allocated for the proposals seems grossly inadequate, this is a concern. Secondly, the proposals seem structured for medium to long term results, we do not see anything which would have an immediate impact, would kick-start the economy. Thirdly, the liquidity issue which is a major challenge for the economy in general and real estate in particular, here too one does not see any major relief.

For real estate, ‘affordable’ remains the government’s favourite in housing, with the previous tax exemptions for both homebuyers and developers being continued for one more year. Commercial real estate segments may witness a boost, with the focus on warehousing, data centres, schools, hospitals and hospitality. Again, the market reality is that there is a difference between ‘circle prices’ and the price points at which transactions are actually taking place, provision for this could have been done.”

(The writer is the President, NAREDCO and MD, Hiranandani Group)