Manmohan for industry status to construction

He, however, said that the way the list of sectors demanding industry status was increasing, everyone might not get the desired benefits that. Currently, India was spending 5.5 per cent of the gross domestic product GDP on the infrastructure sector, Singh said, adding that this must go up to eight per cent in the next five years.

The CIDC has been demanding industry status for construction activity saying that it would help getting easy access to finances apart from many other concessions. Expressing concern over India8217;sdeclining construction activity in the overseas market in the recent years, Singh said quot;we must go deep into it to find out causes and then rectify them.quot;

Singh said that overseas construction orders have come down to little less than one billion dollars in 1995-96 from four billion dollars about 15 years before. He asked the industry to evolve a methodology for improving efficiency in project management, quality of construction and various other aspects like technology and timely completion of projects to get the proper value of money invested. Earlier, CIDC chairman G V Ramakrishna said time and cost overruns in the projects were due to delays in the government decisions and this resulted in a many-fold increase in many projects.8220;If activities like hotel and film have been given industry status then why not the construction activity?8221; he queried. Udesh Kohli, member secretary of CIDC said government must make users pay for availing the infrastructure.