Housing sops won't be taken away, says Jaswant

NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Jaswant Singh said on Friday it would not be a good idea to reverse the policy of incentives for the housing sector which had grown at a rapid pace compared with other sectors in the past three years.
"It will not be sensible to reverse the policy for the housing sector which has shown 25 per cent growth in the past three years," Singh told parliament when asked whether the government planned to continue with fiscal incentives for the housing sector.
A finance ministry panel had suggested that tax incentives for housing loans be withdrawn as part of the overall revamp of tax policy.
Singh did not say what steps the government would take for maintaining the growth rate in the sector.