Govt prunes road target for fiscal

The Union road transport ministry has cut the national highway project award
plan for 2011-12 to 7,300km from the originally planned around 11,000km.

This, in turn, will bring down the investment in the highway infrastructure creation to around Rs70,000 crore from the targeted Rs1 lakh crore for the fiscal.

This fiscal’s plan included taking up more of projects in the fourth phase of the National Highways Development Programme.

In this phase, works related to inter-connectivity among national highways and state highways was to be taken up. While the move is likely to delay arterial network projects, it may also stoke bidding rage, as more and more players will be vying for lesser number of projects.

Speaking about cutting the number of projects on the bidding block at a time when bidders are bullish and putting in competitive bids, a senior ministry official told DNA on the condition of anonymity, “We are looking at targets that are practically achievable. Last fiscal, we awarded length of 4,400km. In 2009-10, we logged 3,360km. At best, this year we would be able to award a total of 8,000-odd km.”

According to the official, projects worth 1500km will be awarded in the first quarter, while the subsequent quarters are likely to see awarding of 2000km each. 

The suggestion to prune came from the empowered committee on infrastructure, headed by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee along with Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and transport minister CP Joshi.

The highway builder’s community, meanwhile, is pegging this move on the lack of uniformity on the land acquisition front.

“There are a number of issues involved. For awarding 11,000km, we also need
to have sufficient land. Land acquisition on such a large scale is in itself a Herculian task. Also, we lack a uniform policy on land acquisition as of now,” said M Murali, director general of National Highways Builders Federation.