The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has mulled plans to keep the pace of highway development and construct as many as 12,500 km of highways in the current financial year, said a senior official.
MoRTH Secretary Alka Upadhyaya on Wedneday said Rs 10,000 crore would be raised through Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) mode in FY 2023-24, reported PTI.
MoRTH has planned to maintain the development pace of highways across the country, she said and added that the government has taken targets to award 12,000 km and construct 12,500 km of highways in the country for 2023-24.
The ministry has not declared data on the construction and award of highway projects for 2022-23 so far. 10,237 kilometres have been constructed in 2019-20, 13,327 kilometres in 2020-21 and 10,457 kilometres in 2021-22 by the road transport and highways ministry.
Raising fund via InviT
MoRTH has worked out several innovative ways of funding its infrastructure projects by involving the private sector in highway construction, said Upadhyaya.
“Till February 28, 2023, Rs 10,200 crore has been raised through InvIT in two phases, for a total length of 635 km, while InvIT III is planned to be awarded in April 2023 for a total of Rs 10,000 crore,” she said and added that Rs 10,000 crore is planned to be raised through InvIT mode in financial year 2023-24.
Working on the pattern of mutual funds, Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) is designed to collect money from investors and invest in assets that will provide cash flows over a period of time.
Signage and road marking
Presently, MoRTH monetises its assets following three different modes: project-based financing, toll-operate-transfer (TOT) model, and InvIT, which provide all categories of investors an opportunity to invest in assets pertaining to highways and associated infrastructure.
Asked if MoRTH plans to issue norms for road marking and signage to deal with violations of lane driving, she said the ministry has already begun road marking and piloting signage in line with the global best practices.
The National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDCL) and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) are mainly responsible for the construction of expressways and national highways in India.