Infrastructure development priority for govt: CommerceMin

Says there is a potential for PPP to contribute more towards the infrastructure development of the nation

Calling for a greater role of PPP model towards building infrastructure, Minister of State for Commerce E M S Natchiappan today said developing the country's infrastructure further was a priority for the government.

"There is a potential for public private partnerships (PPP) to contribute more towards the infrastructure development of the nation. Infrastructure Development is a priority for the government in order to develop the nation," Natchiappan said at an event organised by CII here.

However, industry participants felt there was a need to maintain the current infrastructure optimally in order to attract investments towards this sector.

"While, India invests billions of dollars into infrastructure, it needs to manage and maintain the same optimally... This will encourage more investment both locally and globally," Anshuman Magazine, CMD, CBRE South Asia, said.

Noting that infrastructure management was a complex task involving multiple stakeholders, Managing Director of Hero Electric Naveen Munjal said: "The infrastructure segment is poised for new development and investments in the time to come as any other industry's progress would directly depend on basic infrastructure of the economy."

For the 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-17), India has set a target of $1 trillion investments into the infrastructure sector, doubling the amount envisaged in the previous plan period.