Minister highlights steps taken to control housing costs

The Union Government has taken measures to control the rising prices of construction materials of affordable housing, including those under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana - Urban (PMAY-U), Minister of State for Housing & Urban Affairs Kaushal Kishore said. In the Union Budget 2021-22 and 2022-23, customs duty has been reduced uniformly to 7.5% on semis, flat and long products of non-alloy, alloy and stainless steels, he pointed out in the Rajya Sabha. Export duty on iron ores/concentrates and iron ore pellets has been raised to 50% and 45% respectively. In addition, 15% export duty has been imposed on pig iron and several steel products. Moreover, to give relief to the secondary and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) steel industry engaged in housing/construction, TMT bars below 8 mm have been exempted from the purview of the Quality Control Order, as these are primarily used for non-critical applications. The government has also taken steps to increase availability of iron and steel which, inter-alia, includes Mining and Mineral Policy reforms to ensure enhanced production and availability of iron ore. Moreover, the government has been taking various initiatives to control construction costs of affordable housing projects such as reduction in Goods and Service Tax (GST) on under-construction affordable housing projects from the existing 8% to 1% without Input Tax Credit (ITC) and in case of other housing projects, 5% from the existing 12% without ITC, increase in priority sector lending for affordable housing project from Rs 2.8 million to Rs 3.5 million in metros and from Rs 2 million to Rs 2.5 million in non-metros; and the setting up of affordable housing fund in National Housing Bank.See also: PMAY-G: 4.10 lakh houses yet to be built in Rajasthan Maharashtra unlikely to enact the Model Tenancy Act