According to MoSPI, 421 infrastructure projects had an increase in cost in November of Rs 4.40 lakh crore

 According to MoSPI, 421 infrastructure projects had an increase in cost in November of Rs 4.40 lakh crore

According to MoSPI, 421 infrastructure projects had an increase in cost in November of Rs 4.40 lakh crore

According to the official statistics, in November, the total cost of 421 infrastructure projects with a minimum investment of Rs 150 crore topped Rs 4.40 lakh crore.

Official data indicates that in November, the cost of 421 infrastructure projects with an expenditure of at least Rs 150 crore jumped by Rs 4.40 lakh crore.

According to an official study, as of November this year, the cost of at least 421 infrastructure projects—each requiring an investment of at least Rs 150 crore—had increased to more than Rs 4.40 lakh crore.

The Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation (MoSPI), which oversees infrastructure projects valued at at least Rs 150 crore, reports that 421 of the 1,831 projects it oversees have seen cost overruns, while 845 have experienced delays.

"A total of Rs 4,40,419.74 crore (17.54 percent of the original cost) was incurred in the cost overrun of 1,831 projects, whose estimated completion cost was Rs 29,50,997.33 crore, compared to the original cost of Rs 25,10,577.59 crore." The most recent ministry report, dated November 2023, said.

The study states that as till November 2023, the total amount spent on these projects was Rs 15,58,038.07 crore, or 52.80% of the projects' anticipated cost. It did, however, note that the number of projects that are delayed drops to 629 if the delay is determined using the most recent completion timetable.

Furthermore, it said that 308 projects lacked information on the year of commissioning or the likely duration of construction. Of the 845 projects that have been postponed, 204 have been delayed for a total of 1 to 12 months, 198 for 13 to 24 months, 322 for 25 to 60 months, and 121 for more than 60 months. As.

Of these 845 delayed projects, the average time overrun is 36.64 months. Several project implementing agencies have noted that delays in land acquisition, delays in receiving permission for the environment and forests, and a lack of infrastructural support and connectivity are some of the factors contributing to schedule overruns.

The other causes were delays in securing project funding, incomplete detailed engineering, scope modifications, bidding, ordering and equipment delivery, and issues with law and order. The paper further attributed the postponement of these projects' execution to state-level lockdowns brought on by COVID-19, which were enforced in 2020 and 2021.

Additionally, it has been noted that many project implementing agencies are failing to provide updated cost estimates and commissioning timelines, which raises the possibility that time and expense overrun statistics are being underreported.