Page 9 - India's Infrastructure

Link road to Mopa airport to be completed by April: Gadkari in Goa

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Saturday reviewed the progress of various infrastructure projects in Goa. Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, several MLAs and senior state government officials were present in the meeting chaired by the Union minister of road transport and highways. "During the meeting, it was decided that a major link road to Manohar International Airport at Mopa will be completed by April 2024. Work on the six-lane elevated corridor at Porvorim, the foundation stone of which was laid by Gadkari on Friday, will begin in January," a senior official said. "The road connecting the highway to Mormugao Port in Vasco town would be completed by April next year. The new bridge across Zuari river in Borim village has been granted tentative approval by National Highway Authority of India," he added. The Union minister reviewed the appointment of a consultant for a 'Ring Road' to curb congestion on the Goa stretch of the Mumbai-Kanyakumari and Goa-Hyderabad highways, he said.

National Infrastructure Pipeline outlay stands at Rs 109 trillion: FinMin

National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) was launched with 6,835 projects and has expanded to capture over 9,288 projects with a total outlay of Rs 108.88 lakh crore between 2020-25, the finance ministry said on Thursday. "NIP comprises brownfield and greenfield infrastructure projects of above Rs 100 crore across both economic and social infrastructure," the Finance Ministry said in a post on X. NIP consists of projects implemented by all the states and Union Territories of India and 22 infrastructure ministries, it said. NIP is a first-of-its-kind initiative to provide world-class infrastructure across the country and improve the quality of life for all citizens. It will improve project preparation, attract investments (both domestic and foreign) into infrastructure, and will be crucial for attaining the target of becoming a USD 5 trillion economy by FY25. Mahila Samman Savings Certificate (MSSC) provides financial advantages to women and encourages them to take charge of their ..

Centre, Asian Development Bank sign two loan pacts worth $250 million

Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Monday said it has approved two loans, including funding for the construction of an 82-km Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor, of USD 250 million each. The other loan of USD 250 million towards continued support to industrial corridor development to make manufacturing more competitive, strengthen national supply chains and links with regional and global value chains, and create more and better jobs. Earlier, ADB approved a USD 1,049 million Multi-tranche Financing Facility (MFF) for the project in 2020 to support the construction of RRTS, the first of three priority rail corridors planned under the NCR Regional Plan 2021, to connect Delhi to other cities in adjoining states, a finance ministry said in a statement. The RRTS will have multi-modal hubs to ensure smooth interchange with other transport modes, it said, adding the first tranche of the ADB loan amounted to USD 500 million with another USD 500 million ...

PM in Surat, Varanasi on Dec 17, 18 to launch development projects

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Surat and Varanasi on December 17 and 18 to launch several development initiatives. His office said Modi will inaugurate the new integrated terminal building at Surat airport and the Surat Diamond Bourse on Sunday before travelling to Varanasi to attend the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra. On Sunday evening, he will inaugurate the Kashi Tamil Sangamam 2023 at the Namo ghat, the statement said. The next day, he will inaugurate the Swarved Mahamandir at a public function and also participate in the 'Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra'. The prime minister is also scheduled to inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth over Rs 19,150 crore in his parliamentary constituency. The PMO statement said the new integrated terminal building is equipped to handle 1,200 domestic passengers and 600 international passengers during peak hours and has provision for further increasing the peak hour capacity to 3,000 passengers with the

Chennai needs at least 2,000 km more of modern stormwater drains: Official

Ten days after Cyclone Michuang brought more than 50 cm of rain inundating many parts of Chennai, a senior official of Greater Chennai Corporation said the city needs to add at least 2,000 km more of modern stormwater drains with a higher capacity to handle showers of this magnitude. The city currently has around 2,950 km of drains, most of which have an inadequate handling capacity of 2-5 cm per hour, S Rajendiran, GCC chief engineer for stormwater drains (SWD), told PTI. "Chennai has a road length of 5,500 km. At least 5,000 km of drains with higher capacity are required for the city to handle such heavy rains. New drains coming up in the northern, western and southern parts of the city are being built to handle rain precipitation of 7-8 cm/hour," he said. The official was referring to the 767 km of drains being constructed at a cost of Rs 3,520 crore in Kosasthalaiyar river basin (North and West Chennai) and 360 km of drains built in Kovalam river basin (South Chennai) at Rs 1,71

Shree Cement commissions high capacity kiln for Rs 3,500 cr Rajasthan plant

Shree Cement Limited on Thursday announced the commissioning of a kiln at its new integrated production facility in Nawalgarh, Rajasthan, with a rated capacity of 11,500 tonnes per day. This kiln stands among one of the highest capacity units in the world, and is empowered by cutting-edge technology, allowing utilisation of alternative fuels and ensuring optimal energy efficiency, the company said. The Rs 3,500 crore new cement plant has an annual production capacity of 3.5 million tonnes of cement annually. The plant also features a 33 MW waste heat recovery-based power plant, contributing to electricity generation without relying on fossil fuels. This innovative approach utilises waste gases from the clinkerisation process, aligning with the company's dedication to environmental responsibility. "In our pursuit to become an 80 million tonnes company by the year 2028, we are thrilled to announce the commissioning of the kiln at our new integrated facility in Nawalgarh, Rajasthan. T

Refined copper demand likely to grow 11% in FY24 on infra boost: ICRA

India's refined copper demand is likely to grow 11 per cent in the current financial year on the back of the government's thrust on infrastructure development and a gradual transition to green energy, ICRA said on Monday. The rating agency further said it expects a stable outlook for the country's domestic sector. "ICRA projects copper prices to remain range-bound at current levels of 8,2008,300/tonne in the near term," it said in a statement. It further said that the allocation of Rs 10 lakh crore for capital spending in the last Union Budget, coupled with ambitious targets set under the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP), is likely to drive copper consumption in the medium term. In addition, in the real estate sector, significant incremental supply growth of 30 per cent in the top six Indian office space markets and 10 per cent growth in retail mall space is likely in FY'24, which is likely to spur copper wire demand. Significant emphasis by the government on the smart city

Rs 27,131 crore spent on copper imports in FY23: Govt tells Parliament

India spent Rs 27,131 crore on copper imports in 2022-23, up from Rs 21,985 crore a year earlier, Parliament was informed on Monday. On account of low availability of copper reserves in the country, India has always been an importer of copper ore and concentrate. Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Coal and Mines Minister Pralhad Joshi said, "Per annum net import value (and hence, net foreign exchange outgo) during the last two years... 2021-22 (is) Rs 21,985 crore, 2022-23 (is) Rs 27,131 crore." "India, with a refined copper production of 5.55 lakh tonne in FY2022-23, is the 10th largest in the world," the minister explained. The spurt in imports in the last two years is due to increased demand in copper refining, reflecting a post-pandemic recovery, especially the growth in user sectors such as infrastructure, construction, telecom, electrical, renewable energy, and electric vehicles. Copper is one of the 30 critical minerals identified by the Centre. Copper concentrate

Infrastructure development picks pace under Modi govt, says Scindia

India has made immense progress in infrastructure development under the Modi government and figures among the top five in various sectors and areas, Union Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia said on Friday. While the previous UPA regime ignored the development of the country, India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been consistently growing across the sectors, Scindia told reporters here. A Rs 10 lakh crore budget for infrastructure by the present government shows its seriousness for the development of the country. Area-wise, India might be the seventh largest country in the world, but today "we remain among the top five in various sectors and areas," Scindia said at the conference on 'overall development in the infrastructure in India'. In the roads and highways sector, the minister said that the highway construction has grown to 37 km per day from just 12 km per day before 2014. The government aims to scale it up to 60 km per day during the Amritkaal period by

Digital public infrastructure fuelling innovation, says Nandan Nilekani

Back in 2009, Nilekani and his team played a key role in building digital identity (Aadhaar) which could be verified anywhere online

Infra, manufacturing, utilities to be biggest beneficiaries of bull market

Apart from the aforementioned traditional sectors, current capex cycle may have additional drivers in the form of new-age sectors such as data centres, AI infrastructure, EVs and green energy

Most infra projects already sweat human capital in multiple shifts

Industry executives note most infra projects already work more than single shift, and factors such as city limits, local conditions are deciding factors

PM Gati Shakti for ease of living

In the last one year, as envisaged by the Prime Minister, social sector ministries have also started using the Gati Shakti NMP in innovative ways

PVR Inox plans to open 150 screens next fiscal with Rs 500 crore investment

The country's largest multiplex operator PVR Inox will open 150 screens in the next fiscal with an investment of about Rs 500 crore, a top company official has said. The company, which opened a six-screen luxury cinema at Maison Inox here on Thursday, already runs 118 screens across 23 properties in the megapolis. Overall, including its property in Colombo, it operates 1,711 screens at 359 properties across 114 cities. We are planning to add 150 more screens at an investment of around Rs 500 crore next fiscal, Sanjeev Kumar Bijli, an Executive Director at PVR Inox, told PTI here. On the Maison Inox, he said normally a screen required an investment of Rs 5 crore but given that it's a luxury collection and comes with the first attached bar (Gastby Bar), the per screen cost is about Rs 7 crore. On the company's overseas expansion plans, he said they will have more screens in Sri Lanka only and not anywhere else. Despite the civil war and the deep financial difficulties, "Sri Lanka h

Tata Realty in an expansion mode, in India and international markets

Has over 50 projects across India, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives

Building Bharat's national character

Amidst India's stark economic and social contrasts, a key question emerges: Is economic development or intellectual prowess sufficient for responsible citizenship?

Centre, ADB sign $400 mn loan pact to build high-quality urban infra

The central government on Monday signed a USD 400 million policy-based loan with the Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) to support its urban reform agenda to create high-quality urban infrastructure, improve service delivery, and promote efficient governance systems. The signatories to the loan agreement for sub-programme 2 of the Sustainable Urban Development and Service Delivery Programme were Juhi Mukherjee, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs and Takeo Konishi, Country Director of ADB's India Resident Mission. While Sub-programme 1 approved in 2021 with a financing of USD 350 million established national-level policies and guidelines to improve urban services, Sub-programme 2 supports investment planning and reform actions at the state and urban local body (ULB) levels, the finance ministry said in a statement. After signing the loan agreement, Mukherjee stated that the programme supports the government's urban sector strategy with a focus on reforms aimed at

SP group in talks with PE firms to sell Gopalpur port, other assets

The talks with private equities and other investors were initiated after JSW Ports and the Adani group made offers of around Rs 3,000 crore to acquire Gopalpur Port

Odisha to spend Rs 2,000 cr for disaster resilient infrastructure: Patnaik

"The Bahanaga triple-train tragedy that took place earlier this year in Balasore district is an example of the preparedness of the State government to tackle the disasters", he said

UltraTech Cement may present details of second phase of expansion by Dec

Company likely to present details of its second phase of expansion by December this year