Economic Survey 2024: Private sector finance ‘crucial’ for quality infra; rental leaders urge govt to prioritize infra investment and other issues

Economic Survey has said, Private sector finance ‘crucial’ for quality infra. India’s workforce is nearly 56.5 crore, with 13.0 per cent in construction

New Delhi, 22 July 2024 | Nirmesh Singh

While the Budget for FY 2024-25 will be tabled tomorrow in the Parliament, Prime Minister Modi said on Monday that the Budget 2024 would set the direction for the journey of the next five years and lay the foundation for fulfilling the dream of ‘Viksit Bharat’ in 2047.

The Economic Survey 2024 was also tabled by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Parliament today.

It stated, “India’s real GDP grew by 8.2 per cent in FY24, posting growth of over 7 per cent for a third consecutive year owing to stable consumption demand and steadily improving investment demand”.

It also suggested that a higher level of private sector financing and resource mobilization from new sources will be crucial for India to build quality infrastructure and it underlined the requirement for policy and institutional support from the central government, state and local governments.

India’s infrastructure rental industry leaders also shared their views on issues prevailing in rental industry.

Som Dutt Sharma, Director, Premier Heavy Lift Pvt Ltd, one of India’s leading rental company, has urged the government to prioritize infrastructure investment and financial incentives in the upcoming budget.

He said, “Increased infrastructure spending will catalyze demand for equipment rentals, while subsidies for acquiring new machinery will facilitate modernization”.

He emphasized the need to incentivize the domestic manufacturing of construction equipment by providing tax breaks, subsidies, and robust policy support for local manufacturing.

“This will reduce reliance on imports, particularly from China, which is unsustainable and detrimental to national interests and this will also generate employment and fortify the economy”, he added.

Young entrepreneur Gaurav Bhushan, Founder of EQUIP 9, an aggregated platform for heavy equipment industry, was also vocal on the issue of streamlining of payments, inter country rental taxes, tax rebate on buying environment friendly equipment.

He urged government to implement regulations for timely payments and promote digital transactions to reduce delays and enhance transparency and also highlighted the need to simplify and reduce rental taxes for cross-border operations with Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka to encourage regional cooperation and business growth.

“There is also a need for a clear regulatory framework for the rental industry”, he added.

Gaurav Bhushan also said, government should give tax rebate, etc. on usage of new, environmentally friendly equipment.

The Economic Survey is a comprehensive review or annual report of Indian economy during the closed financial year and is prepared by the Economics Division of the Department of Economic Affairs of the Finance Ministry.
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