Investment policy to boost infrastructure?

Investment policy to boost infrastructure?
The Times of India

Bangalore: Learning from the success of public-private-partnership (PPP), the government is likely to bring in an “investment policy’’. The focus will be to attract investments in the infrastructure sector.

At a meeting of the empowered committee on infrastructure on Wednesday, members headed by former chief secretary B K Das deliberated on the logistics of bringing out such a policy.

Briefing reporters, Vinay Kumar, principal secretary (infrastructure), said the new policy could be executive in nature. “This is a take-off from the infrastructure policy of 1997. It will crystallise the PPP and enhance confidence of the private investor. States like Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab and Uttaranchal already have it in place,’’ he outlined.

With this, investments in infrastructure would bring in much-needed facelift and give boost to public projects, the members felt. The committee also took cognisance of the fact that PPP did not have a formal structure and was vague, which meant there was no onus to show results.

Though Vinay Kumar stressed that the policy would come in only as an executive policy, empowered committee member R K Misra differed saying until the state had an Infrastructure Act, it would not be mandatory for private sectors to show results.

Project review: The empowered committee on infrastructure in tandem with civic stakeholders reviewed the progress of various projects in the city. Accordingly, the inner core ring road will be given out to a special purpose vehicle, SPV, taking the project out of the purview of BMP and BDA.

The road will follow the earlier plan of an elevated toll-free expressway where the north-south and east-west corridors will meet.

Even the Peripheral Ring Road will be given out to an SPV, said committee members. Land acquisition for road widening, will, however go on.