core sector communique

Dr. C.P.Joshi meets Developers, Concessionaires & Lenders on issues Related to Road Sector and NHAI

Dr. C.P. Joshi, Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways has said that Government is keen to ensure that Road Sector achieves success and hence his ministry can not afford to take any chances. Chairing a Meeting with Concessionaires/ Financial Institutions/Banks and Consulting Engineering Firms on the issues related to Road Sector in general and NHAI in particular here today, he said that despite ups and downs in other sectors, road sector had held on to its own momentum and has been performing much better. Huge resources are required to complete very ambitious task at hand and the same have to be mobilized fast. The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways looks up to lenders and financial institutions for their continued support and enhanced funding commensurate with its targets. Dr. Joshi said that this meeting has been convened for an open dialogue with financial institutions and concessionaires to understand the current scenario and if there are any reasons for drop in sentiment. The Ministry wants to understand what are the concerns of the lenders, concessionaires and developers ? Is there something which Ministry needs to do further? What more remedial steps Government need to take so that the planned targets could be met? He said that his Ministry’s role is that of a facilitator and sought cooperation of all concerned in achieving set targets in road sector. He assured the participants that such meetings will be held more frequently. The Minister informed the participants that the financial year 2011-12 has been an outstanding year for the Indian Road Sector. A record length of 7957 Kms of roads was awarded for strengthening/ up gradation and improvement and over 2200 Kms were completed during the year 2011-12. This has been the highest ever achievement so far and the Ministry compliment the role played by Infrastructure Industry. Buoyed by the success achieved in the year 20012-13, the Ministry has pegged the targets for the road sector, to achieve 9500 Kms of award and 3500 Kms of completion. Dr. Joshi expressed his concern that the performance of road sector during first quarter has not been quite up to the mark. Projects bid out in the first quarter have not received the kind of response the Ministry had last year, with some getting no bidders at all. Feedback received indicates that one of the reasons may be the tightening of the purse-strings from the lenders for funding of road projects. The Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Dr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia also interacted with the participants. The Minister of State for Road Transport & Highways Shri Jitin Prasada, Secretary, M/o RT&H Shri A. K. Upadhyaya, Chairman NHAI Shri R.P. Singh and senior officers of the Ministry were present in the meeting.