** Nifty realty index up 2.6 pct; builders such as Prestige Estates Projects Ltd, Puravankara Ltd , Godrej Properties surge

** Central cabinet on Thursday approved increase in carpet area of houses eligible for interest subsidy under the Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme (CLSS) for the middle income group under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana initiative http://bit.ly/2A6Dwbg

** Godrej Properties and Indiabulls Real Estate Ltd were up more than 4 pct each while Sobha Ltd , Prestige Estates and Brigade Enterprises Ltd rose over 3 pct each

** The news is sentimentally positive. Companies in the affordable segment space could benefit from some tax benefits and credit-linked subsidy scheme, says Parikshit Kandpal, lead analyst, infrastructure and real estate - says HDFC Securities

** Puravankara and Kolte-Patil Developers rose over 12 pct each

** Cement stocks such as Ambuja Cements Ltd and UltraTech Cement Ltd climbed over 1 pct each on likely demand boost from the approval, analysts say

** Nifty realty index has risen about 83 pct this year up to Thursday's close