The Planning Commission will approach the Cabinet next month with a draft bill for an institutional mechanism to speedily resolve issues related to public contracts and a separate note on the progress of Public Private Projects (PPP) projects with remedies to solve problems faced by them.
“The Planning Commission is in the final stages of drafting a bill for setting up an institutional mechanism to address issues hampering PPPs, next month,” a Commission official said.
He said the panel is also finalising a note on the status of PPP projects in the country with suggestions to resolve issues that have led to delays.
Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Friday held a meeting of secretaries of infrastructure ministries to discuss the note on PPP projects.
“This was a first review meeting about PPP projects. We have been asked by the Prime Minister...the Finance Ministry and Planning Commission together to come back with an assessment of how the (PPP) programme is going, what problems have arisen and how can we address them,” Mr. Ahluwalia told reporters.
“We had a draft paper which was discussed with all secretaries. We will redo (revise) the paper and discuss with the Finance Ministry (before going to Cabinet),” he added.
The meeting was attended by Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram and Road Transport and Highways Secretary Vijay Chhibber. Representatives of ministries including power, coal, civil aviation and urban development were also present.
The dispute resolution bill and the PPP note are aimed at restarting the investment cycle and boosting investor confidence. The government envisages investments of $1 trillion in infrastructure projects in the five years ending March 2017, with half the amount coming from the private sector.
In May, amid rising concerns over delays and cost overruns in PPP projects, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had asked the Planning Commission to prepare a draft bill to put in place an institutional mechanism for speedy resolution of issues related to public contracts, in consultation with all stakeholders and ministries.
