The government should increase the present limit of tax exempt savings from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 1.5 lakh, the insurance sector, demands Deepak Sood, MD & CEO, Future Generali India Life Insurance Co Ltd. Here are a list of asks from Mr Sood from the insurance sector

• Encourage domestic savings by providing tax incentives for investment in insurance and pension schemes.

• Increase in present limit of tax exempt savings from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 1.5 lakh

• Allow higher FDI limits in Insurance (from 26% to 49%)

• Provide clarity on process and timelines for implementation and roll out of tax schemes like DTC and GST.

• In DTC there should be separate limit for life insurance as well as for pension plans. Also in DTC, life insurance plans should have same treatment as is available presently i.e. premium paid under plans where insurance cover exceeds five times of premium, should be deductible for tax purposes and maturity should also be tax exempt in such cases

• Improve credit off take via

Commercial Office Real Estate

1. The implementation of the revised DTC will have strong implications on SEZs. The industry requires clarity on the issues that may emerge, and how businesses would be promoted in Special Economic Zones.

2. Taking cues from the healthy growth of IT/ITES in Tier I cities and its effect on the growth of employment, the Government should actively roll out an incentive-based IT policy (such as STPI) for Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns as well

Residential Real Estate

1. Last year, a 1% interest rate subsidy was provided for loans towards affordable housing. The scope of this subsidy should be amplified and broadened to include a wider price band of budget housing to benefit home buyers, especially in lower income groups
2. More funds should be allocated to the Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) for urban housing targeted at the EWS and the LIG sections
3. Enact provisions for Special Residential Zones (SRZs) to incentivise the growth of housing stock at targeted locations

Retail

The forthcoming Union Budget comes in the backdrop of slowing economic growth, high fiscal deficit because of lower than estimated tax collections and runaway subsidies and amidst an environment where the government is seen to be stuck by policy paralysis and at best muddling along as far as the economic reform agenda is concerned.

The Centre's fiscal deficit for FY12 is expected to be higher by 100 bps over the budgeted fiscal deficit; this budget is therefore expected to have a thrust towards fiscal consolidation. If the slippage is indeed 100 bps, then to meet the Centre's FY13 fiscal deficit target of 4.1% as outlined in the medium term fiscal policy statement in the FY12 Budget, the reduction in the fiscal deficit required for FY13 would be around 150 bps of GDP from the FY12 level of around 5.6%. This is also important as the Reserve Bank of India has made policy rate cuts contingent on sustained decline in inflation, fiscal consolidation and progress on key supply-side reforms.