"The government is looking forward to an intense private sector participation in future road projects. From the total of Rs 1,85,000 crore (Rs 1850 billion) to be invested in road projects by the year 2012, around 80 per cent of works will have to be executed by private firms," Gajendra Haldea, advisor to the Planning Commission Deputy Chairman said at an Assocham conference on highways in New Delhi.
The government cannot finance huge investments required in infrastructure, thus increased participation from private players is inevitable, Haldea said adding the government's role would be more like an enabler.
He said government intended to invest Rs 1,85,000 crore in roads, Rs 60,000 crore (Rs 600 billion) in ports and Rs 40,000 crore (Rs 400 billion) in airport projects.
Terming the country's road projects modest, Haldea said while China's infrastructure projects were highly unsustainable and economically unviable, Latin America's were suffering from cost over-run.
He said government has finalised a blue print to join all road and railway missing links to ports and a dedicated railway freight corridor would soon be put in place. B N Puri, advisor (transport), Planning Commission said the government has taken a decision in principle that all berth development work would be awarded to private firms.
Earlier, chief general manager, National Highway Authority of India, Atul Kumar said the government had revised future road project investments from Rs 1,72,000 crore (Rs 1720 billion) to Rs 1,85,873 crore (Rs 1858.73 billion).
Giving a break-up of the future road projects, Kumar said the government proposed to seek investment Rs 42,000 crore (Rs 420 billion) in balance work in National Highway Development Programme I and II and Rs 55,000 crore (Rs 550 billion) in NHDP III, Rs 25,000 crore (Rs 250 billion) in NHDP IV, Rs 40,250 crore (Rs 402.50 billion) in NHDP-V, Rs 15,000 crore (Rs 150 billion) in NHDP VI, Rs 15,000 crore in NHDP-VII and Rs 14,623 crore (Rs 146.23 billion) in Special Accelerated Road Development Programme for north eastern region.
He said foreign firms from five countries - USA, Malaysia, United Kingdom, Philippines, China - were entrusted various road projects in the development programme.
The NHAI CGM said contracts were awarded to 32 foreign firms in 57 projects covering 2,993 kms. All future projects will be on public-private participation except NHDP-VII and SARDP, Kumar said.
