Improved rural incomes, higher rural credit and increased allocation for the rural, agricultural and allied sectors are likely to boost rural demand, including the requirement for rural housing.

Capital outlay for the infrastructure sector up to Rs 5.97 lakh crore in FY2018v19 (up 20.8 per cent over FY2018), with major increase for segments like railways, telecommunication and affordable housing.

Total budgetary allocation for the sector (including PMGSY) raised by 6.7 per cent to Rs 89,544 crore from Rs 83,900 crore in the previous year.

Higher capital expenditure outlay for the railways (increased by 11.8 per cent from 2017v18 and 22.1 per cent from 2017v18) at Rs 1.46 lakh crore to support infrastructure projects. Of this, the budgetary allocation from the government stands at Rs 53,060 crore (up from Rs 40,000 crore in 2017v18, and marginally lower than 2017v18).

The government's thrust on infrastructure, which is one of the key end-user industries for the steel business, is an encouraging trend for steel demand. Within infrastructure, significantly higher capital expenditure earmarked for affordable housing, power transmission and railways is likely to augment steel demand.

Provision of revenue expenditure/subsidy for sensitive petroleum products of ~Rs 217 billion for FY2019 and 2018v19 (BE), excluding allocation of new LPG connections to poor families.

If the Indian economy needs to sustain its growth momentum in the coming decade, developing world-class infrastructure facilities is of paramount importance. Traditionally in India, a significant portion of debt requirement for financing infrastructure has been met by borrowing from domestic banks.

With an outlay of Rs 1,773 for the year 2017û18, the government has set the ball rolling for the port sector. To promote port-led development in India, Rs 600 crore has already been allocated for the Sagarmala Programme.

Coal mining activities by definition are commercial, but in India this has come to define the right of a coal miner to sell the products in open market.