Rs 3.3 lakh crore invested in 113 infrastructure projects

NEW DELHI: Approval to held-up infrastructure projects has begun to translate into actual investment and raised fresh hopes of reviving industrial demand and employment.

Initial numbers flowing into the cabinet secretariat suggest that nearly 90% of the investment in large projects, which were held up and have now been cleared, have materialized. An analysis of the 113 projects cleared by the Project Monitoring Group ( PMG) housed in the cabinet secretariat shows that against investment intention of Rs 3.7 lakh crore, Rs 3.3 lakh crore has already been invested.

Last week, Anil Swarup, who heads the PMG, had said that so far, 152 mega projects with investment of close to Rs 5.3 lakh crore have been cleared. The group, which was set up to work with other ministries to remove last-mile hurdles, has received data for 113 projects, while information on the others is being collected. The PMG has received 438 proposals from projects worth Rs 1,000 crore or above, involving total investment of close to Rs 20 lakh crore that have been held up for want of approvals.


While there are several projects where investment is yet to begin, government officials said, in a majority of cases the project was held up due to a one or two clearances that have now been obtained. In fact in many cases, a part of the project went on stream within weeks. "In several cases, the investment is more than what was originally planned, indicating that there may be an element of cost overrun," the officials added.

Whatever be the reason, cash flowing into the held-up projects is expected to relieve promoters of financial pressure as they can repay bank loans and plan new investments and revive the demand for machinery and equipment. Several companies are facing financial crunch as the projects have been delayed for years. Although the immediate impact will be to boost sentiment, production of power or coal from the held-up projects will boost economic activity in the coming years, although most of the credit will go to the new government.

Officials pointed out that the pace of project clearances is going to pick up as 14 states have also decided to set up agencies such as PMG, which will also deal with smaller projects.