GST blues: Earth-moving, construction equipment majors fear dip in growth

Modi govt's ambitious infra projects may also be hit due to high rate of tax on sector under GST

The earth-moving and construction equipment (ECE) segment, which was returning to the growth path, is worried that after the introduction of the goods and services tax its growth will dip.

Though such equipment are used in infrastructure, almost 50 per cent of it is taxed as luxury items.

Anand Sundaresan, president, Indian Construction Equipment Manufacturers’ Association (ICEMA), said the earth-moving and construction equipment (ECE) industry witnessed year-on-year decline until the end of 2015.

For the first time in five years, in 2016 the industry grew after the much-required push from the government in terms of budget allocation and resuming stalled projects especially in