Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways C. P. Joshi said here on Wednesday that National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) would raise Rs.10,000 crore through bonds within a month for the development of highways in the country.
Speaking at the inaugural of the construction equipment and technology exhibition Excon 2011, Mr. Joshi said the Finance Ministry had permitted the NHAI to raise funds through tax-free infrastructure bonds.
Stressing the need to boost road infrastructure, he said it was imperative to attract foreign investment in infrastructure. Among the proposals considered include 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in infrastructure, tax concessions and duty-free imports for construction equipment.
To increase transparency and efficiency in the bidding process for infrastructure contracts, he said the government would make e-tendering mandatory from February 1, 2012.
Admitting that only 4,600 km was awarded this fiscal, much lesser than the 7,300 km per year needed to achieve the Prime Minister's target of 20 km of highways per day, Mr. Joshi said: “We have not been able to achieve 20 km per day, but we are confident of doing it before the next general elections.”
Report
Released at the exhibition was a report titled “Indian earthmoving and construction equipment industry vision 2020”. The report, commissioned by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and IECIAL and prepared by Accenture, estimates that the industry would grow from $3.3 billion in 2010 to $20-25 billion by 2020.
The report said growth would be “enabled” by addressing issues affecting the industry such as the multiple and differential tax system.
Elaborating this, Glenville da Silva, Chairman of Indian Earthmoving and Construction Industry, said a simple, clear tax structure such as the GST (Goods and Services Tax) would help. He suggested clarity in environmental laws, transparency in administrative processes and a land acquisition bill.
B. Muthuraman, President, CII, said the five-day exhibition was vital for the construction equipment industry which needed to market itself better. “The exhibition highlights capabilities and advancements in the sector,” he said.
Excon 2011, in its sixth year, hosts over 600 companies in the construction equipment field. Wednesday saw the unveiling of the Tata Motors' tipper truck, Tata Prima 3138, touted to be the first automatic transmission truck in the country and the Volvo FMX for deep mining activities.
