DEST Practice 10

The National Infrastructure Pipeline, announced in December 2019 with an initially projected investment of one hundred and two lakh crore rupees over the five-year period from 2019-20 to 2024-25, is the most comprehensive and ambitious infrastructure investment planning exercise ever undertaken in India, aggregating projects from all central ministries, state governments, and public sector enterprises across sectors including energy, roads, railways, urban infrastructure, water supply, social and commercial infrastructure, digital and industrial infrastructure, and logistics. Infrastructure investment is widely recognised as a multiplier of economic growth, raising productivity across all sectors by reducing transportation costs, improving logistics efficiency, ensuring reliable energy supply, connecting markets, and enabling the urbanisation that accompanies industrialisation, and India's infrastructure deficit relative to peer economies has historically been a significant constraint on its growth potential and economic competitiveness. The Bharatmala Pariyojana is the umbrella national highways development programme that aims to construct forty-four thousand kilometres of new national highway by 2022 at a total investment of five and a half lakh crore rupees, connecting economic corridors, inter-corridor routes, ring roads, and expressways that reduce logistics costs by improving the speed and reliability of road freight movement between major production centres, ports, and consumption markets. The Sagarmala Programme, with its four pillars of port modernisation and new port development, port-led industrialisation, port connectivity enhancement, and coastal community development, is the government's strategic framework for maximising the potential of India's seven thousand five hundred kilometre coastline and inland waterways as drivers of economic development and export competitiveness. The development of dedicated container terminals, mechanised cargo handling systems, rail and road connectivity to port gate, and logistics parks adjacent to ports is transforming the efficiency and cost-competitiveness of India's maritime gateway infrastructure. The Airports Authority of India and the Ministry of Civil Aviation's UDAN Regional Air Connectivity Scheme have together expanded air travel access to smaller cities and underserved regions, with UDAN subsidising airfare on unviable routes to connect tier-two and tier-three cities to the national air network. Inland waterways development under the Inland Waterways Authority of India is harnessing India's three thousand kilometres of navigable rivers and canals as a low-cost, fuel-efficient freight transportation alternative, with cargo movement on the National Waterway one connecting Varanasi and Kolkata having grown significantly since systematic investment in terminal infrastructure and navigation aids was undertaken. The Gas Grid expansion programme is extending the natural gas pipeline network to states that currently rely primarily on liquid fuels, enabling the substitution of cleaner natural gas for petroleum products and coal in industrial and commercial energy use. The Jal Jeevan Mission, the AMRUT programme, and the Smart Cities Mission collectively represent the urban and rural infrastructure component of the National Infrastructure Pipeline, investing in water supply, sanitation, urban transport, and digital connectivity that is essential for the quality of life of the growing urban and rural population.