PM Modi reviews progress in key infrastructure sectors, demands timely completion of projects
Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting of infrastructure sectors, including roads, railways, airports, digital ports and coal, calling for a consolidated approach to complete existing projects within stipulated timelines. The meeting, attended by top officials from PMO, NITI Ayog and all infrastructure ministries of the Government of India, lasted about four-and-a-half hours. Assessing the work done in the road sector, it was mentioned in the meeting that under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna, the highest-ever average construction rate of 130 km a day had been achieved for rural roads. This had led to an addition of 47,400 km of roads under PMGSY in 2016-17. As many as 11,641 additional habitations had been connected with roads in the same period. Apart from this, over 4000 km of rural roads had been constructed using green technology in FY17. The use of non-conventional materials such as waste plastic, cold mix, geo-textiles, fly ash, iron and copper slag was being pushed aggressively. HERE IS ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW The Prime Minister directed that the construction of rural roads be carried out efficiently and their quality be efficiently monitored. For this, he emphasised on the use of space technology in addition to the technologies already being used, such as the “Meri Sadak” App. He called for speedy completion of vital links that will connect the remaining unconnected areas at the soonest. Modi directed that new technologies be used in road construction also. He asked NITI Aayog to examine global standards in the application of technology for infrastructure creation and how feasible implementing the same in India was. In the highways sector, over 26,000 km of 4 or 6-lane national highways have been built in FY17, and the pace is improving. In the railways sector, new lines covering a distance of 953 km were laid in 2016-17, as against the target of 400 km. Track electrification of over 2000 km, and gauge conversion of over 1000 km was achieved in the same period. More than 1,500 unmanned level crossings have been eliminated in 2016-17. Among the steps taken to enhance customer experience, Wi-Fi access was enabled in 115 railway stations, and 34,000 bio-toilets added. The Prime Minister called for expediting work related to redevelopment of railway stations and greater creativity in the generation of non-fare revenue. The progress of important projects in the roads and railways sectors, such as the Eastern Peripheral Expressway, Char Dham Project, the Quazigund-Banihal Tunnel, the Chenab railway bridge, and the Jiribam-Imphal project was also reviewed. In the aviation sector, the Regional Connectivity Scheme will connect 43 destinations, including 31 unserved destinations. The passenger capacity in the aviation sector has reached 282 million passengers per annum. In the ports sector, under the Sagarmala project, 415 projects have been identified with an investment of Rs. 8 lakh crore, and projects worth Rs 1.37 lakh crore have been taken up for implementation. The Prime Minister stressed on better outcomes for turnaround time of ships and clearance for Exim cargo. In the digital infrastructure sector, as many as 2,187 mobile towers have been installed in districts affected by left-wing extremists in 2016-17. The progress of the National Optical Fibre Network was also reviewed in the meeting. The Prime Minister emphasized that the emerging digital connectivity network, which will connect thousands of Gram Panchayats within the next few months, should be implemented effectively so that it can lead to a better quality of life and greater empowerment of people in the rural areas. In the coal sector, rationalisation of coal linkages and movement yielded an annual saving of over Rs 2,500 crore in 2016-17. Noting the decline in coal imports in the last year, the Prime Minister asked for even more vigorous efforts towards coal import substitution, and application of new coal technologies including gasification technology. Kevin Faulk Womens Jersey
Adani commissions multimodal logistics park in Punjab
Adani Logistics Ltd, a subsidiary of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) and part of Adani Group, on Thursday said it has commissioned and commenced commercial operations at its multimodal logistics park at Kila Raipur, Ludhiana in Punjab. The latest terminal was dedicated to the nation by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, the company said here in a statement. The logistics infrastructure facility, spread across 77 acres, is strategically located on the dedicated freight corridor feeder route and will facilitate double-stack train services to Mundra Port in Gujarat. ”With the commissioning of this multimodal logistics park, our third inland container depot (ICD), we are a step closer to attaining leadership in the logistics sector,” said Karan Adani, CEO, APSEZ. The multimodal park, with a newly constructed warehouse and two railway handling lines, is now open for domestic cargo and domestic container handling, he added. Riley Nash Authentic Jersey
Beijing keen on Delhi’s participation in infra meet
Though PM Narendra Modi is not expected to attend the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing next month, India will send his representative to the summit, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi claimed on Tuesday . “India will have a representative. We welcome the Indian representative as well as members of the business and finance community to take part in the summit,“ he said. China is keen to see India participating in the event because it will add to the credibility of the Belt and Road programme. New Delhi, however, has not confirmed it participation in the May 14-15 event. Attending the summit would mean that India is softening its stance on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is part of the One Belt, One Road programme. India has objected to the fact that passes the corridor through a disputed area in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. India wants a clear statement from China that the corridor would not affect Indian claim over the Kashmir areas under Pakistan’s control, but Wang indicated that Beijing will not budge from its stance on the CPEC. “ As for disputes in Kashmir, China’s position has remained unchanged. The CPEC has no relationship with the dispute in certain regions. I want to reaffirm this to our Indian friends,“ he said at a press conference in Beijing. “I want to mention that the CPEC is economic, and for the purpose of serving economic cooperation and development.It has no direct link with political or border disputes,“ Wang Yi said. India, which is weighing the pros and cons of participating in the Forum, is expected to announce a formal decision soon. He also claimed that it is China which is planning the Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar (BCIM) economic corridor though many believe that the initiative came from New Delhi. “India is taking part in this initiative in its own way .For example, we have the Bangladesh China India Myanmar (BCIM) economic corridor which is one of the major economic corridors China is planning with neighbouring countries. India is part of that with Bangladesh and Myanmar.“ Denis Savard Authentic Jersey
Long waits at toll gates defeat purpose of express ways
Almost all toll plazas in and around Bengaluru make motorists wait in long queues defeating their very objective of easing traffic and saving time for motorists. The Navayuga Devanahalli toll plaza, on the way to the Kempe Gowda International Airport, has reached the saturation point. The 14 toll-collection booths are just not enough, especially during peak hours. Those maintaining the roads say there is no more space to add more toll-collection booths.Navayuga Devanahalli Tollway’s VV Raman said, “We even separated highway vehicles from those going to the airport but things have not changed.“ The price of land on either side of the toll plaza has skyrocketed, he pointed out. According to National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), a sixlane highway should have 36 toll booths while a four-lane highway should have 26 toll booths. None of the toll plazas which are run by the road builders are following the rule. The situation in Nelamangala, Hosur Road, Hoskote and various toll plazas on NICE road are no different. Anchi Chowdappa, the man in charge of the BangaloreNelamangala Toll Plaza (also run by Navayuga), admits that 15 minutes are wasted in the pileup. “We wrote to the state government four times to give us land to add toll booths. But, it is still under consideration.“ He pointed out that one of the eight booths was under maintenance while one was equipped with radio frequency identification (RFID).Only six booths were functioning. The NHAI introduced RFID last year but only one toll booth in each plaza is equipped with an RFID reader. In these booths, motorists need not stop. The RFID system tag works like a prepaid card and the toll is automatically deducted. Officials point out that the lack of awareness regarding RFID is the problem. Apparently , only 5% motorists -mainly interstate trucks -use it. There will be more RFIDreading booths if awareness goes up, they say . NS Rama, CEO, the Electronic City Industrial Township Authority (Elcita), pointed out that given the high traffic into the technology hub, there were only two toll booths. NICE’s MD Ashok Kheny said technology upgradation and increase in the number of booths at all toll plazas on the NICE corridor will be carried out in the next two months. New York Islanders Authentic Jersey
Gadkari Reviews NHAI Projects, Calls for fast Tracking of award and Construction
The Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping, Nitin Gadkari has emphasized on fast tracking the award and construction of National Highways projects. In a review of NHAI projects on Tuesday, Gadkari said that while a record 16,271 km of National Highways have been awarded and 8231 km constructed during the year 2016-17, work needs to be done at a much faster pace to award more projects and construct those that have been awarded. The minister also said that there will be an award for the best performing Project Director and Regional Officer. He said the Mumbai-Vadodara, Bangalore-Chennai and Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressways are to be sanctioned by June 2017. Tender for 33 wayside amenities is also to be floated by June 2017. Electronic Toll Collection will be made available on all lanes on all toll plazas by 31 March, 2018. Referring to the problem of land acquisition as one of the hurdles in implementation of projects, Gadkari called for positive cooperation with the concerned state governments to tackle the issue. He also called for expeditious resolution of issues like forest clearances, appointment of independent engineers, change of scope etc. Beau Allen Womens Jersey
States can borrow directly from foreign agencies for infra projects
The Union Cabinet has approved new rules to allow financially sound state government entities to borrow directly from other countries which give Official Development Assistance for major infrastructure projects. In such cases, the state government concerned will give a guarantee and the Centre will provide a counter-guarantee. For instance, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, a Maharashtra government entity, would be allowed to directly take an ODA loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for the Rs 17,854 crore Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link project. The JICA loan portion is expected to be Rs 15,109 crore. The existing guidelines did not allow direct borrowing by state government entities from external agencies. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said several state agencies were implementing infrastructure projects of national importance. These projects, even if viable and sound, have huge funding requirements. And, borrowing by state governments for such projects might exhaust their respective borrowing limits. A state government is allowed to borrow to the extent that its fiscal deficit does not exceed the limit of three per cent of its gross state domestic product (GSDP). The 14th Finance Commission provided a further flexibility of 0.5 percentage points to states, subject to stiff conditions. Under the change in rule, this additional borrowing by state entities for such infra projects will not count for the three per cent ceiling applicable on states. It allows financially sound state entities to directly borrow and repay the loan required for such major infra projects, without burdening the state exchequer, the finance minister said. The new arrangement will be subject to fulfilment of certain conditions. For instance, all repayment of loan and interest to the funding agencies will be directly remitted by the borrower concerned. External assistance plays a key supportive role in financing of many infra projects, social sector projects and in building of institutional capacity. This role has gained further significance in view of the large gap in funding requirements for major infra projects of states. At present, external development assistance from bilateral and multilateral sources is received by the Centre for projects or programmes in the central sector, for projects implemented by central public sector undertakings, and on behalf of state governments for state sector projects or programmes. The country has an estimated funding requirement of Rs 43 lakh crore ($646 billion) for infra projects over the next five years. About 70 per cent of this would be needed in power, roads and urban infrastructure. The recent N K Singh panel report on a new Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management law has recommended bringing down the combined state fiscal deficits to 2.5 per cent of their GDP in the medium term, from the current 2.98 per cent. Larry Warford Jersey
Government awards 49 port projects worth Rs 8,341 crore in FY17
The government awarded 49 port projects with an investment of Rs 8,341 crore in the previous fiscal, which will result in capacity addition of 104 MT. This was against a target of 102 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) capacity augmentation. “In respect of development of port infrastructure, 49 projects have been awarded with a capacity of 103.52 MTPA against a target of 102 MTPA with an investment of Rs 8,341.12 crore during the last fiscal,” Shipping, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari told PTI. He said concerted efforts to improve port infrastructure have resulted in the highest ever capacity addition of 100.59 MT in major ports during the last fiscal. “Major ports capacity during 2015-16 was 965.36 MTPA. This crossed 1,065 MTPA during 2016-17,” the minister said. India has 12 major ports — Kandla, Mumbai, JNPT, Marmugao, New Mangalore, Cochin, Chennai, Ennore, V O Chidambaranar, Visakhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata (including Haldia) which handle approximately 61 per cent of the country’s total cargo traffic. Boosted by a slew of steps, the major ports surpassed private players by handling a record 647.43 million tonnes of cargo in 2016-17. They registered an annual growth rate of 6.79 per cent in cargo handling against 4.32 per cent in 2015-16, whereas private ports annual growth rate stood around 4 per cent in the just-concluded fiscal. Ben Gedeon Authentic Jersey
Record 8,231 km of national highways constructed in 2016-17: Nitin Gadkari
Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday said a record 8,231 kilometres of national highways were built during 2016-17. He also ordered fast-tracking of awarding and construction of national highway projects to further expedite them. Gadkari’s directions came as he reviewed various projects of National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) here. The minister said that while a record 16,271 kilometres of national highways were awarded and 8,231 kilometres constructed during the last fiscal, work needs to be done at a much faster pace to award more projects and construct those that have been awarded. He also announced that the best performing project director and regional officer would be awarded for their work. In 2015-16, a total of 6,029 kilometres of national highways were constructed which was also the highest till that year. Gadkari said the Mumbai-Vadodara, Bengaluru-Chennai and Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressways would be sanctioned by June 2017. “Tender for 33 wayside amenities is also to be floated by June 2017. Electronic toll collection will be made available on all lanes on all toll plazas by March 31, 2018,” a statement from his office said. Referring to the problem of land acquisition as one of the hurdles in implementation of projects, Gadkari called for “positive cooperation” from the state governments to tackle the issue. He also called for expeditious resolution of issues like forest clearances and appointment of independent engineers. Jacob Trouba Jersey
₹10-lakh cr umbrella road project to subsume Highways Development plan
The ambitious ?10-lakh-crore umbrella programme for roads, Bharatmala, will subsume the National Highways Development Project (NHDP), launched by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government in 1998. This may be one of the last mega projects of the BJP government before it seeks public mandate in 2019, besides being the second largest highway project after the NHDP that saw development of about 50,000 km of NHs as per global standards. First phase investment The Prime Minister’s Office, after going through a presentation on the ambitious Bharatmala project earlier this month, has asked for Public Investment Board’s (PIB) clearance to the first phase of the project, a government official told PTI. The first phase will be carried out at an estimated investment of ?5.35 lakh crore for building 29,000 km of highways network that includes economic corridor schemes, coastal and other roads. “After viewing the presentation by the Road Transport and Highways Ministry, the PMO was of the view that a note should be floated for PIB approval,” said the official, who did not wish to be named. Blueprint ready “A blueprint of the Bharatmala project has already been finalised and detailed project reports (DPRs) are in the process of formation,” the official said. Another official in the know said the Bharatmala project has been envisaged as an umbrella programme that will subsume unfinished parts of the NHDP and also focus on the new initiatives such as creation of economic corridors, development of border and international connectivity roads, coastal and port connectivity roads and other corridors. The NHDP is being implemented in various phases and includes Golden Quadrilateral connecting four metropolises besides the North-South Corridor connecting Srinagar to Kanyakumari and East-West Corridor joining Porbandar to Silchar. About 10,000 km of projects under NHDP are yet to be completed and most likely will be awarded by the end of the year. The official said deliberations are under way for financing of the projects under Bharatmala and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) could be delegated projects under engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) as the NHAI board has the autonomy. 44 corridors identified A Road Transport and Highways Ministry-appointed study under the proposed Bharatmala project by global consultancy firm AT Kearney has identified 44 economic corridors. The economic corridor project is aimed at faster movement of cargo and will be developing not only economic corridors with a length of about 21,000 km but 14,000 km of feeder routes. The corridors include Mumbai-Kochi-Kanyakumari, Bengaluru-Mangaluru, Hyderabad-Panaji and Sambalpur-Ranchi, to name a few. Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has been stressing the need for reducing logistics cost in the country from the current 18 per cent. Noting that high logistics cost has been one of the major bottlenecks in trade and business, the minister has been stressing on the need to develop innovative methods for transport. Anthony Hitchens Jersey
E-way bills under GST get mixed signals from logistics players
The proposed electronic way bill under the goods and services tax regime (GST) has evoked a mixed reaction from from logistics players, who expect challenges in operationalising it in its present form in the short run. However, they agree that ultimately this would lead to easier funds flow. The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) put out a proposal on e-way bill, as a part of easing inter-State traffic movement under the GST regime. “The proposed e-way bill in the GST regime will put an additional layer of documentation by way of prior online registration of the consignment for transporting shipments exceeding ?50,000. The objective of the GST is to bring a lot of ease in doing business. “However, the requirement of securing e-way bill for inspection by GST officials in transit seems a dilution, as this is likely to lead to interception of vehicles in all inter-State and intra-State movement of goods,” said K Satyanarayana, Co-founder and Director, Ecom Express Private Ltd. Ecom Express said that unforeseen circumstances leading to transfer of goods from one vehicle to another may nullify the earlier e-way bill and transporters would have to create a new e-way bill on the GSTN portal before moving ahead. In case of third party logistics providers, for consignment value exceeding ?50,000, the sender as well as the transporter will have to upload details to generate an e-way bill, Satyanarayana added. Furthermore, Ecom Express had concerns on the rigid timelines regarding e-way bills as emergencies can arise in the course of transport, triggering delays in transit beyond the specified number of days leading to tracking etc. The unorganised nature of the logistics sector will make it difficult for players to adopt electronic-way bills, as proposed by CBEC, as the country readies to migrate to the GST regime, Mayur Gandhi, CFO, DB Schenker Logistics, told BusinessLine. “There will be less manual intervention leading to less errors and much clearer documentation. Also, there will be challenges as the sector is unorganised. E-way bill, which is in proposal form, should be implemented after two years as that would be the time taken after GST,” he said. But some aspects of the e-way bill were welcomed. Chander Agarwal, Managing Director, TCIEXPRESS, said the provision will benefit the government and transporters. “While it allows government to keep a tab on the movement of goods to be transported, it will also allow transporters to file a complaint if the vehicle is detained for a period exceeding 30 minutes. The e-way bill portal allows the transporter, supplier and the recipient to be on a single platform through which tracking of goods will be enabled through Radio Frequency Identification,” Agarwal said. “As an organised player we believe also that this move by the government will help to help regularise the unorganised sector as well as curb malpractices,” said Agarwal. Jugnoo, a start-up, welcomed e-way bills and even said it was planning to launch “something in this domain”. “Recommendation of e-way bills for inter-State movement of goods is a remarkable initiative as it will enable standardisation of processes and bring transparency in the system. This proposal has immense potential to completely root out the corrupt practices in this sector,” Samar Singla, CEO and Founder, Jugnoo said. Kyle Long Jersey