Infrastructure Firms Want Policy Changes

The infrastructure sector is booming but that has not made the industry''s budget wishlist any shorter and topping that list are better lending and refinancing policies. The Indian infrastructure boom is here to stay irrespective of the slowdown in major global economies and the construction giants including L&T, HCC, Gammon and IVRCL want to see this Union Budget come in as a booster primarily seeking policy changes that will solve their problem of dual dividend taxation at SPV company and holding company level, reduction in rate of capital gain tax for unlisted SPVs, better lending and refinancing policies and easing of ECB norms. Opportunities for the construction industry are also being created by industrial capacity expansion such as steel, cement, oil & gas, power and petrochemicals besides growth in housing demand and at a time when the construction and infrastructure companies are growing at over 30 per cent per annum and with projects worth $350-450 billion planned during XIth five year plan spanning 2007-12, the government will clearly will not be a in position to ignore the industry.