Expediting land acquisition, environmental clearance crucial for the economy: Nitin Gadkari

India has adequate growth underpinnings for infrastructure, but challenges in acquiring land and securing environmental clearances delay airports, roads, or ports in the world’s fastest-expanding major economy.

Nitin Gadkari, minister for road transport, highways and shipping, and industry leaders emphasised need to speed up decisions at the Connecting India panel discussion at the Economic Times India Infra Summit 2017. He said concerns over scrutiny from the judiciary, media and investigating agencies slowed down decisions.

“We need to assess what the the country is paying due to stay orders from the judiciary in infrastructure projects. What is the cost due to delay in land acquisition and environment approvals? I am sure the cost is Rs 1 lakh crore,” Gadkari said at the discussion. “We need to change the atmosphere and improve decision-making process.”


(L-R) NBCC CMD Anoop Kumar Mittal, Dalmia Bharat MD Puneet Dalmia, minister for road transport, highways and shipping Nitin Gadkari, HCC CMD Ajit Gulabchand and Adani Ports CEO Karan Adani.

Puneet Dalmia, MD at India’s third-biggest cement manufacturer Dalmia Bharat Group, said, “With candour and honesty, speed and lower prices can be achieved. There is strong political will too. The Rs 7-lakh crore NPA is a problem... But can people take decision boldly without being criticised? That is the question to address.”

Gadkari said the government had resources to fund projects but was keen on private participation. He said Indian contractors and investors would get the highest priority as his government would seek to solve the industry’s problems.

“To build the infrastructure India needs, we require a serious ecosystem. The financial infrastructure of the country is woefully inadequate to deal with what we are planning to do. We also need to look at the entire procurement system and assess how to better share the risks between the private and public sectors,” said Ajit Gulabchand, CMD at builder HCC.



Industry leaders praised the government and its agencies for bringing in transparency and efficiency in the system.

“A lot of infrastructure that has been created in the past one and a half years focuses on efficiency in using existing infrastructure. Earlier, private players were doing better at major ports but this is the first time that as a private player, we are competing with public sector on efficiency,” said Karan Adani, chief executive officer at Adani Ports.

Anoop Kumar Mittal, chairman and managing director of state-run NBCC, said: “A contractor’s job is demoralizing. When the contractor invests in a PPP, the government does not think of him as a partner. Thus, the PPP model has not been successful.”