The two-day brainstroming has been organised by the Infrastructure Development Finance Company in association with the Planning Commission and the World Bank. World Bank director, private sector development department, Magdi Iskander quoted Ahluwalia when he emphasised the need for remunerative charges for infrastructure services.

The World Bank's private sector lending arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), shared Iskander's views that private sector investments could only be lured into infrastructure development if user charges were lucrative. The IFC's director for south and southeast Asia, Rashad Kaldany, said lack of consumer ability or willingness to pay and low political will to enforce charges was holding up transportation projects in India.

"The correct approach is nobody can have infrastructure if somebody does not pay," Ahluwalia said, pointing out that the whole approach to privatisation had been skewed from the start. "In Plan targets the basic drive to bring in the private sector came from the realisation that the public sector undertakings (PSUs) did not have the resources," Ahluwalia said.

The Plan panel member emphasised that to entice the private sector to invest in infrastructure services (like roads, ports and power utilities), the government would have to either raise user charges, raise subsidies or a `combination of both.' He said, "There is no free lunch, prices will determine the quality of services provided."

Magdi Iskander said, "Unless you change the price structure (for power) nothing will happen." He too, felt the costs of infrastructure services must be paid for either by the user or the tax-payer.

World Bank vice-president, South Asia region, Mieko Nishimizu, said "quality infrastructure makes people willing to pay." She said private sector participation in infrastructure development demanded good governance, policies and institutions from the government.

It also demanded good governance, policies and a willingness to share risks from the private corporations, she said in the same breath. Nishimizu a former member of the economics faculty of Princeton University, emphasised the importance of governments building and keeping their credit-worthiness.Infrastructure Development Finance Company Limited chairman Deepak Parekh said, "private sector investment for provision of urban infrastructure cannot take place unless a full cost-plus recovery of such investment is ensured." He called for the need to reform and rationalise municipal, property and other tax structures and user charges to be able lure the private sector into investing in infrastructure services.

Both Deepak Parekh and IFC director for South and Southeast Asia Rashad Kaldany referred to the Global Competitiveness Report of the World Economic Forum. The report ranks India 53rd in a survey of 59 countries.

Kaldany found holes in the government's economic reforms policies ("cross-subsidisation still prevalent in utilities and lack of user willingness to pay for utilities and transportation"). Iskander said there was no substitute for consistencies and political will in bringing about economic and infrastructure development, but admitted that India was slowly moving towards systematic reforms.

Parekh saw silver linings in the dark infrastructure horizon. The hike in diesel prices and transport fares was an indication that the government would not baulk at tough decisions, he felt.