Infrastructure Projects in India Requirement, Planning, Execution, Reason for Delay
H.L. Chawla, President, Tecknovate Solutions, New Delhi.
Introduction
- Providing a good infrastructure has been neglected in the past in India. The realization came very late. Because of the neglect of this very important aspect, India was relegated to back waters. India was not competing well with the other world economies. Good infrastructure becomes a driver for the engine of the economic growth of the economy. This fact has dawned on the powers that be in India for sure in the past decade or so. The results are there for all to see.
- The author has travelled to a very large number of countries, both developed and developing in the last more than three decades. Countries in the Middle East, South East Asia & Africa which were far behind India became much more developed in comparison to India by thinking of & providing infrastructure at a very rapid pace. The author used to wonder when India will embark on the path to create a rapid infrastructure improvement. However, the Government of India is now creating a very robust Infrastructure. The huge investments by the Government of India on development of infrastructure in the country has resulted in a positive spiraling effect on the economy by triggering growth in other sectors like manufacturing and service sector.
- According to a study conducted by the World Bank, "Indian Road Construction Industry Capacity Issues, Constraints & Recommendations"
"Any investment in construction leads to a spurt in the activities of ancillary industries. Construction activities contribute to almost one third of the projected GDP growth. As construction activity increases, it stimulates increased output from the manufacturing sector and a very substantial increase in employment. It has been reported that every rupee invested in construction causes a corresponding increase of about Rs0.80 in the GDP as against Rs 0.20 and Rs 0.14 in the fields of agriculture and manufacturing."