A noted Indian economist, Dr V. K. R. V. Rao once said, “The link between infrastructure and economic development is not a once and for all affair. It is a continuous process; and progress in development has to be preceded, accompanied, and followed by progress in infrastructure, if we are to fulfill our declared objectives of generating a self-accelerating process of economic development.”
After India was hailed as a ‘bright spot’ in the global economy by IMF, India’s annual budget this fiscal year focused on removing restrictions and barriers in the transport sector with a total budget allocation of Rs. 97,000 crore.
With the growth target of 30km road construction in a day, the infrastructure sector is expected to head towards a boom.
But, the congested roads, delay in their construction and inefficient utilisation of allocated funds tell a different story.
The poor and appalling condition of the ill-maintained roads in India over-shadow the gigantic networking through roads in India.
With intermittent pot holes and one feet deep ditches, roads in India are more than just a medium of travelling.
Roadways play a significant role in the economic development of the country and bad roads are a poor indicator of a country’s growth. In the last fiscal year, the road construction had increased from 12km-a-day in 2013-14 to 16km-a-day. In order to achieve this year’s target of 15,000km highways, it is necessary to construct atleast 30km of roadways in a day.
Besides constructing highways for connecting cities, it is also necessary to ensure construction of all weather pucca roads in rural areas such as Punjab and other northern states.
If rural roads are uneven and rough, roadways in urban areas are congested with heavy traffic especially in mega cities like, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata etc.
Transport Minister of India had recently met teams from six IITs to discuss the growth and development of roadways in India, especially after the delayed work in the construction of roads.
Even though, India is growing at a fast pace, in terms of economic development, its network of transportation is a clear indicator of its overall development as a growing economy.