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India had once thought of two projects that could have changed the face of economy, if implemented. However, both the projects, one of which was to be done on water and the other one under the ground, lost track of development, and it’s only because of the efforts of <keyword id="2238662" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="PM-Modi">PM Modi</keyword> that they have been again brought on track. 
 The two projects are Sagarmala, which was the plan to upgrade the waterways and was aimed at making water transport a major option for businesses, and the <keyword id="3400638" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="national-fibre-optic-network-project">national fibre optic network project</keyword>, which aimed to bring Internet to every Indian village via underground fibre. 
 
Talking of Sagarmala, it was held up mainly because of the unsolved differences between shipping and rail ministries, but transport Minister Nitin Gadkari has held several meetings and his interventions could lead to things gaining pace. 
 
The projetc is moving upwards fast, with all its core details being finalised and RITES, the government consultancy firm, being asked to work out final logistics. Not only this, the project of this cost is also brought down from Rs 6000 crore to Rs 4000 crore. 
 
The project includes 150 smaller projects under various categories like port modernisation, connectivity, port-led industrialisation and coastal community development. 
 
On the fibre optics project, a senior official familiar with the PM's views told ET that "problems have been existing since Sam Pitroda's time (Pitroda was appointed by various Congress governments earlier)...but the PM wants the targets to be reached soon." 
 
As of now, over 1,30,000 km of cable had been laid while the situation stood petty, at only 500 km of cable laid out, when Modi became the PM in May 2014. Even now, only 7,000 gram panchayats have received the final connectivity out of 1,00,000 gram panchayats targeted in the first phase, says a source from the telecom ministry, and the deadline is March 2017. 
 
<a href="http://www.datekoupdatekar.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Narendra_Modi_PTI_2.jpg">Image source</a>

These long-pending government projects are back on track because of PM Modi’s efforts

When the Modi government announced its first budget in 2014-15, the government of the largest democracy had allocated Rs 1.91 trillion for infrastructure development. Growing at a breathtaking phase through the consecutive budgets of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and touching Rs 4.94 trillions in 2017-18, the infrastructure sector received a push of Rs 5.97 trillions in the budget 2018-19. For <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword>’s government, infrastructure development of the country has been a prime focus area. While making his budget speech while presenting 2018-19 budget, <keyword id="42575" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arun-Jaitley">Arun Jaitley</keyword>, the Finance Minister remarked, “Our country needs massive investments estimated to be in excess of Rs 50 lakh crores in infrastructure to increase growth of GDP, connect and integrate the nation with a network of roads, airports, railways, ports and inland waterways and to provide good quality services to our people." In order to the augment the resources, the government levied a road and infrastructure cess of Rs 8 per liter on the petrol and diesel imported. Jaitley said, “The government and market regulators have taken necessary measures for development of monetizing vehicles like Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) and Real Estate Investment Trust (ReITs) in India. The government would initiate monetizing select CPSE (central public sector enterprises) assets using InvITs from next year." The latest economic survey reveals that such measures will be operationalized provided the country will face a $526 billion gap in the investment towards infrastructure development. Jaitley added, “Reserve Bank of India has issued guidelines to nudge corporates to access the bond market. Sebi (Securities and Exchange Board of India) will also consider mandating, beginning with large corporates, to meet about one-fourth of their financing needs from the bond market." Announcing the most innovative and integrated infrastructure planning model, the National Democratic Alliance government launched the country’s largest ever rail and road budget through budget 2018-19 that saw an allocation of Rs 1.48 trillion and Rs 1.21 trillion respectively. Way back while announcing the 2017-18 budget, Arun Jaitley said the cabinet had given a nod to the most ambitious Bharatmala (roads) scheme that will significantly strengthen the country’s roads network. To support this massive allocation requirement, the government said Rs 5.35 trillion as equity from the market. Jaitley’s talk emphasized that the nation required funds for some ambitious plans Sagarmala (ports) and Bharatmala to enhance its transport infrastructure to meet the growing needs of the largest democracy effectively. “To raise equity from the market for its mature road assets, NHAI will consider organizing its road assets into special purpose vehicles and use innovative monetizing structures like toll, operate and transfer (TOT) and Infrastructure Investment Funds (InvITs)," stressed Jaitley. Though the 2017-18 budget allocated Rs 73.31 crores for Airports Authority of India (AAI) from Rs 149.93 crores in 2017-18, AAI had to raise Rs 4,086 crores. While commenting on the line of budgets by the NDA government headed by Narendra Modi, Jaijit Bhattacharya, partner and head, economics and regulatory at consultancy firm KPMG remarked. “The budget demonstrates a very significant push on infrastructure, including rural infrastructure, as well as for immediate job creation as well as supporting long-term employability through education and skill development is very encouraging."

A look at budget allocation for infrastructure under the Modi government

The long-awaited <keyword id="11063161" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="water-taxi-services" source="Orion">water taxi services</keyword> linking <keyword id="6358070" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="mumbai" source="Orion">Mumbai</keyword>'s east coast with the mainland in Navi Mumbai and other locations -- the first of its kind in India -- was inaugurated on Thursday by Chief Minister <keyword id="53973" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="uddhav-thackeray" source="Orion">Uddhav Thackeray</keyword> in the presence of <keyword id="13195284" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Union-Shipping-Minister-Sarbananda-Sonowal" source="Orion">Union Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal</keyword>. While Thackeray inaugurated the new Belapur Jetty, Sonowal formally flagged off the water taxi services with Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, Urban Development Minister Eknath Shinde, Ports Minister Aslam Shaikh, MoS Ports Abdul Sattar, Mumbai Port Trust Chairman Rajiv Jalota, Maharashtra Maritime Board CEO <keyword id="719088" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amit-Saini" source="Orion">Amit Saini</keyword>, <keyword id="37647" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="thane" source="Orion">Thane</keyword> Collector Rajesh Narvekar, local elected representatives and other dignitaries. Expressing gratitude to the Centre for prioritising the country's first water taxi here, Thackeray said that it will go a long way in improving connectivity with Mumbai along with the network of roads, flyovers, subways, the upcoming Mumbai Trans Harbour Link and other mega-infrastructure projects. "The country's first railway service was started by the British between Mumbai and Thane before it quickly spread all over India. The city always sets a trend that is emulated by the rest of the country, after Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj ruled over the seas," said Thackeray. The water taxi service will not only benefit the people in travelling quickly -- from the present 90-100 minutes by road to 40-45 minutes by the sea -- but also give a fillip to tourist places like Elephanta Island, Kanhoji Angre Isle and other places on the mainland in the Konkan, besides spurring the local economy as more routes will be added in the near future. It would also give an option to the commuters coming to Mumbai from different parts of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region and help ease of commuting in and around the country's commercial capital, he said. Sonowal said that besides the water taxi and Belapur Jetty, the Centre is making efforts to develop various infrastructure projects in all coastal areas of the country under the Sagarmala Project. "We are making efforts to provide better services to the people in the coasts, accelerate the cycle of economic development, generate employment, ease congestion on roads, etc. We plan to have more jetties in the Mumbai harbour area and depending on the public response, another jetty will be constructed here," Sonowal said. The Union Minister said that under the Sagarmala initiative, 131 projects worth Rs 1.05 lakh crore are earmarked for Maharashtra with financial assistance of Rs 278 crore to 46 projects since the state has huge potential for urban water transportation in Palghar, Thane, Mumbai, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg coastal districts. As per the officials, the work on Belapur Jetty started in January 2019 and was completed in September 2021 at a cost of Rs 8.37 crore with state and Central funds. It has a huge parking area and presently three water taxi routes have been finalised linking the Domestic Cruise Terminal in south Mumbai with Belapur and JNPT on the mainland in Navi Mumbai, plus the Elephanta Caves. Four operators would run speed-boats as water taxis with a capacity of 10-30 passengers and catamarans that can ferry 56 passengers for mass transport, with provision for monthly passes for the regulars. Deputy CM Pawar, Shinde and Shaikh also spoke on the benefits and cost-effectiveness of water transport compared to other modes besides being eco-friendly and low on investments, considering Mumbai's strategic location vis-a-vis the mainland. One of the operators said that the water taxis shall be available for up to 330 days in a year -- barring the five-six weeks of the peak monsoon season -- to zip commuters to and fro the east coast of Mumbai and the mainland or the two isles. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/npci-to-deploy-upi-in-nepal-first-country-outside-india/articleshow/89641194.cms">NPCI to deploy UPI in Nepal, first country outside India</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/social-e-commerce-platform-dealshare-raises-45-million-from-adia/articleshow/89641250.cms">Social e-commerce platform DealShare raises $45 million from ADIA</a>

India's first water taxi connecting Mumbai east coast with mainland sets sail

The country will add 1.25 lakh kilometers of roads under phase III of PM Gram Sadak Yojana spending ₹ 80,250 crore. While presenting budget allocation for the ministry of roads and highways, the Finance minister mentioned the projects undertaken in the last four years. She said, “ The <keyword id="2844663" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bharatmala">Bharatmala</keyword>, Sagarmala and Udaan projects have worked towards reducing rural and urban divide.” She also called for One Nation, One Card for connectivity. Sitharaman also pushed for public private in metros to develop metros across the country and aid completion of sanctioned projects. The metro rail project has also been a milestone setter as 300 km of new projects were approved, while 210 km stretch operationalised. The total length of metro rails have now reached 657 km. Comprehensive restructuring of <keyword id="6373156" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="National-highways">national highways</keyword> programme under the 2nd phase of the Bharatmala project is also set to be operationalised. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;">YEAR </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;">BUDGET ALLOCATION </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;">2018-19 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;"> ₹ 78625.5 crore </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;">2019 (interim) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;"> ₹ 80016 crore </td></tr></tbody></table> In the Interim Budget, the government had increased the budget for the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways by 5.58%. Highways sector is one of the best performing areas. The government expenditure in the area went up from ₹ 34,345 crore in 2014-15 to ₹ 78,625 crore in 2018-19. India’s road transport network is amongst the longest in the world, with over 5.5 million kms. The network aids the movement of almost 64.5% of all goods in the country and 90% of its passenger traffic. The ministry has big plans coming up in the next few years. By 2022, the ministry has plans to construct 200,000 km of national highways in the country. For financial year 2019 itself, the ministry has set target to award 15,000 km projects and construction of 10.000 km of national highways. A total of about 295 major projects for bridges and roads are also expected to be completed during the same period. The ministry’s Bharatmala project is its latest high end endeavour, which aims at improving connectivity in border and other areas. The project is set to cost ₹ 5.5 trillion for the development of about 50,000 km of road networks.

Union budget 2019: Will lay 1.25000 kms of rural roads says Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

<ul><li>During the <keyword id="7190005" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="interim-budget-2019">Interim Budget 2019</keyword>, the Modi government presented Vision 2030. </li><li>From clean Ganga to an astronaut in space and building hubs for Digital India, the Vision 2030 agenda has big plans. </li><li>The government’s current track record in some cases and the lack of details in others are uninspiring. </li></ul>Indian government’s budget for 2019-20 was supposed to be an interim vote on account before the elections in the upcoming summer. However, the government’s promises, hopes and estimation went as far as 2030. Here’s the 10-point agenda for the next decade set by Piyush Goyal, standing in for finance minister Arun Jaitley. “We are poised to become a Five Trillion Dollar Economy in the next five years and aspire to become a Ten Trillion Dollar Economy in the next 8 years thereafter.” The message from the government is that it is not just focussed on the headline growth, but also on the quality of life. “On the social infrastructure side, every family will have a roof on its head and will live in a healthy, clean and wholesome environment,” said Finance MInister Piyush Goyal. It was 2017, when prime minister Modi promised to double farmers’ income in the following five years. However, the rural distress has been one of the biggest failures of the administration. While ‘housing for all by 2022’ is still an ongoing project, there is still a lot left to desire in <a href="https://www.bloombergquint.com/global-economics/15-million-indian-households-have-meters-but-no-electricity">electrification</a> and <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Politics/d0gb1cTpVnVwJaUQIPIaaP/Swachh-Bharat-Abhiyan-Why-Indias-toilet-data-is-too-good-t.html">sanitation</a> of villages. “Digital India into every sector of the economy” There were two announcements towards digitisation of the economy – to turn 1 lakh villages into Digital Villages over next five years, and a plan to build centre of excellences for Artificial Intelligence (AI). This is not the first time the government has promised a push for AI. ₹3,073 crores were allocated for the programme in 2018-19. This fund was supposed to boost the development of artificial intelligence, robotics, big data analysis, and digital manufacturing, by setting up centres of excellences in the country. However, there has been little or no progress so far. The Indian government had allocated ₹10,000 crores in the last budget for Bharat Net phase II-- a pan-India broadband network--to create 500,000 rural wifi hotspots. By December 2018, the network had covered half the target range, but the utilisation was reportedly less <a href="https://thewire.in/government/pmo-bharatnet-project-shoddy-state-of-broadband-initiative">than 10%</a>. “Over ₹17,000 crore has been spent already on BharatNet. No results can be seen. There is no utilisation...Public money has been wasted and it will become a serious problem for the government," a senior official at Trai told <a href="https://www.livemint.com/politics/policy/trai-asks-telecom-dept-to-auction-bharatnet-assets-to-private-firms-1548698974471.html">Mint</a> in January. “This India will drive on Electric Vehicles with Renewables becoming a major source of energy supply. India will lead the world in the transport revolution through electric vehicles” India did assume the lead in the global fight against climate change after the <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/what-signing-the-paris-climate-change-treaty-means-for-india/story-RsDH1IAohQNEqRxb426YbM.html">Paris pact </a>of 2016. But the push towards green vehicles at home has had, at best, a sputtering start. While there has been a growth in demand for electric two-wheelers, only 1,200 electric cars were sold in FY 2017-18, according to a report done by the <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Politics/1x96WeyG6cCVnm5zPcUraK/Govt-proposes-incentives-to-boost-EVsalesin5-years.html">Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles.</a> The main concern of the automobile companies is the lack of infrastructure for growth of EVs in India as well as the absence of <a href="https://auto.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/industry/are-indian-automakers-ditching-ev-in-want-of-clear-policy/67749150">clarity</a> regarding the EV policy. “Expanding rural industrialisation using modern digital technologies to generate massive employment” Both industrial growth and employment have been among the big failures of the Modi regime, mostly because private investment has been lacking. The most recent data in factory output growth was the lowest in 17 months. A news report based on leaked data from the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) said that India’s unemployment rate has hit a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/unemployment-in-india-is-at-its-highest-in-45-years-says-an-indian-daily-citing-an-undisclosed-jobs-survey/articleshow/67769020.cms">45-year high</a> by December 2018, with a majority of job losses seen in rural India, showing that the government’s policies have so far failed to spur industrialisation and jobs. “Our Government has worked vigorously for cleaning River Ganga. Fifth Dimension of our Vision for India of 2030 is Clean Rivers” The government has already approved ₹25,500 crores for ‘Namami Gange Mission’, but the impact has less than satisfactory, according to environmental activists. There was no additional in the current budget for the same programme. Spending crores of rupees for beautification of ghats has been "wastage of the public exchequer" because "without ensuring a continuous flow, clean Ganga will continue to remain a distant dream", said <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/why-indias-waterman-thinks-the-governments-3-5-billion-plan-to-clean-up-ganga-is-not-working/articleshow/67672185.cms">Rajendra Singh,</a> who goes by the sobriquet "Waterman of India". “Our efforts in the Sagarmala programme will be scaled up and we will develop other inland waterways faster.” According to a reply to a right-to-information petition filed in 2018, it was <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/sagarmala-drives-in-slow-lane-only-1-5-projects-completed-since-fy16-118091700931_1.html">reported</a> that just 80 projects had been completed out of the 220 projects envisioned under the Sagar Mala project, over three years after its inception. “Placing an Indian astronaut into space by 2022” The ISRO chief K Sivan in a press conference last month had <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indias-first-manned-mission-to-space-may-have-women-too/articleshow/67486206.cms">announced</a> that under the Gaganyaan mission,a three-member team will be sent to space which could also include a woman astronaut. It’s too soon to evaluate the progress of this plan. “High farm production and productivity will be achieved through modern agricultural practices and value addition” India, a country which has over 45% of its population employed in agriculture, is also a major exporter. According to <a href="https://www.ibef.org/exports/agriculture-and-food-industry-india.aspx">reports</a>, during April-October 2018, exports of agricultural and processed food products totalled US$ 21.61 billion. India now faces the problem of <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/agrarian-crisis-farmer-protests-rural-distress-surplus-production-crop-procurement-the-age-of-surplus-5213499/">surplus</a>, where farmers are ready to answer the demand for more produce. However, the farmer has not been in the winning end of the deal. A report of the Committee on Strategy for Doubling Farmers' Income by 2022 <a href="https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/agriculture/you-may-pay-a-steep-price-but-does-the-farmer-make-any-money--62364">states </a>that “The WPI (wholesale price index) of food articles was lower than that of agricultural inputs for most years, indicating that farmers received lower market prices for agricultural commodities than the prices paid for the purchase of inputs.” “Aiming at healthy society with an environment of health assurance and the support of necessary health infrastructure” The Indian government had announced its ambitious Ayushman Bharat scheme in 2018. The Finance Minister during his budget speech announced that so far ₹3000 crore had been allocated to Ayushman Bharat which has benefited over 10 lakh people. However, many states have pulled out of the scheme criticising it for legitimate and political reasons. As the minister from Chhattisgarh explained, Ayushman Bharat provided insurance for secondary and tertiary healthcare in hospitals, whereas <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/healthcare/biotech/healthcare/chhattisgarh-govt-to-pull-out-of-ayushman-bharat/articleshow/67550227.cms">nearly 80%</a> of the state’s citizens required primary healthcare services. Outpatient treatment, which is hugely popular with India’s poor households according to <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/201612_health-and-morbidity.pdf">a Brookings report</a>, isn’t provided under the scheme. In addition, as public hospitals lack the requisite infrastructure, the government is relying heavily on private hospitals, which aren’t that widespread in semi-urban and rural areas and can promote expensive treatments to improve their margins “Transforming India into a Minimum Government Maximum Governance nation” ‘Minimum Government Maximum Governance’ was one of the many slogans that Modi came up with ahead of the 2014 elections. Indeed, he managed to reduce the layers in bureaucracy and made processes simpler in many cases. It helped India to rise to the <a href="http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=184513">77th position</a> in the ease of doing business ranking assessed by the World Bank, up from 142 in 2014. Yet, the spirit of the slogan does not pervade all parts of the government. For instance, startups, which mushroomed in India in the years where there was no focussed regulation, have now hit a wall with the infamous ‘angel tax’. Early stage investors who back these startups were burdened with higher tax in a bid to control money laundering. The sweeping tax on all angel investors hurt new investments in startups. Even the steps taken to assuage the concern has only added to the layers of permission required to start a new business. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/income-tax-slabs-for-2019-20/articleshow/67788923.cms">No tax proposed on annual income up to ₹500,000</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/the-indian-government-just-announced-its-highest-ever-outlay-for-defence/articleshow/67789219.cms">The Indian government just announced its highest ever outlay for defence</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/budget-2019-income-tax-and-other-benefits-for-middle-class-in-india/articleshow/67789294.cms">Here is how the Budget 2019 benefits the Indian middle class</a>

India’s Narendra Modi has a grand vision for 2030 – but it is short on details

New Delhi, Nov 28 () The government has prepared a roadmap to increase country's port capacity to over 3,300 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) by 2025, Parliament was informed on Thursday.
 The move is part of National Perspective Plan (NPP) for the Sagarmala Programme, Minister of State for Shipping Mansukh Mandaviya said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.
 An analysis of nation-wide end-to-end logistics flows of all key commodities at ports was carried out based on which NPP for the Sagarmala Programme was prepared in April 2016, he said. 
 As part of the NPP, a roadmap is developed for increasing Indian port capacity to 3,300 plus MTPA by 2025. 
 The minister further informed that master planning of 12 major ports has been carried out and 95 capacity expansion and port modernizations projects have been identified.
 "Major ports capacity has been re-rated with respect to global bench marks as per berthing policy 2016 and effective capacity has increased by 293 MTPA after re-rating. Global bench marks have been adopted to improve the efficiency and productivity for major ports and 116 initiatives have been identified to unlock 100 MTPA of capacity at major ports," Mandaviya said.
 An action plan for coastal shipping has also been prepared by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in September 2019, the minister said.
 The plan includes recommendations with respect to infrastructure creation required to increase the use of coastal shipping in India, he added. ABI RVK

Prepared roadmap to ramp up port capacity to over 3300 MTPA by 2025: Mandaviya

New Delhi, Feb 26 () The government on Wednesday approved the exemption of India Ports Global Ltd from the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) guidelines for smooth execution of Chabahar Port project. The approval was given during a Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "The Union Cabinet...has approved the exemption of the India Ports Global Ltd (IPGL) from the DPE Guidelines, except reservation and vigilance policies," the shipping ministry said in a statement. IPGL was incorporated as a special purpose vehicle jointly promoted by Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) and Deendayal Port Trust (DPT) for development and management of Shahid Behesthi Port of Chabahar in Iran.Subsequent to the withdrawal of the US from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the external affairs ministry advised the shipping ministry on October 29, 2018 to exclude JNPT and DPT from possible impact of US sanctions. "Based on this and with the approval of empowered Committee all the shares of JNPT &amp; DPT were purchased by 'Sagarmala Development Company Ltd' (SDCL) on December 17, 2018," it said.SDCL is a central public sector enterprise (CPSE) and therefore IPGL being a subsidiary of SDCL has also become a CPSE. As a result, guidelines of DPE are technically applicable on IPGL.Since Chabahar Port is the country's first overseas port project with strategic objectives, there is an urgent need to allow IPGL to continue to function as a board managed company, duly following the instructions of the shipping as well as external affairs ministries without making the guidelines of DPE applicable to it for a period of five years, the statement said. Accordingly, the shipping ministry has requested exemptions to IPGL from the applicability of the DPE guidelines, for smooth execution of the project. SID SID ANUANU

Cabinet approves exemption of IPGL from DPE guidelines

Mumbai, Apr 27 () Domestic steel players need to gear up to raise production by improving efficiency and reducing cost to tap into the international markets, as China has become a net importer due to the COVID-19 impact, said JSPL Managing Director V R Sharma. Speaking at an online seminar organised by the All India Induction Furnaces Association (AIIFA) along with Hyve India, the managing director of Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL) said the fall in domestic demand for steel is a temporary phenomenon and will pick up once the government agencies start tendering major infrastructure projects. "Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, China's steel production was affected for nearly four months from December 2019 and, thus, they started importing steel from every possible source from March 2020. So, today, China is a net importer of steel and we have no threat from that country," Sharma said. He added that at the same time, the demand from southeast Asian countries and Europe is also increasing as their activities are also impacted. "Therefore, Indian players need to gear up to increase production by reducing cost and improving efficiency." In Europe, the demand is coming from Italy, Spain and Germany because the steel industries there were also severely impacted due to the pandemic. "Similarly, a good demand is coming from Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and also from China and we need to take advantage of this by selling as much as we can," he added. Also, with a number of infrastructure projects slated to be tendered by various government agencies, this will give the necessary boost to domestic demand for steel. "Union Minister for Highways Nitin Garkari recently said there are nearly 460 large projects which will come into action by December 2020, which include the ambitious Bharatmala and Sagarmala projects. Along with these, we are expecting projects from the Indian Railways and other state agencies like BHEL, PGCIL and others like the irrigation department. "Once these projects are declared by the government, we will be in a position to sell more steel. There will be so much demand in India that will become an importer of steel if we don't gear up," Sharma added. Besides, the iron ore mines are now operational and there is sufficient availability of domestic coal, which can be used for increasing steel production, he added. "The government and the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) are taking all the necessary steps from their end. We cannot expect the government to do everything. While we should focus on improving productivity, the government can ensure movement of trucks and tendering of projects as fast as possible. Also, the government can support the industry in terms of moratorium and not declaring companies as NPAs (non-performing assets)," Sharma added. PSK HRS

Firms need to gear up to raise output for tapping steel markets ceded by China due to COVID-19: JSPL

A structure taller than <keyword id="6354539" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dubai">Dubai</keyword>'s iconic 163-floor <keyword id="92239" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Burj-Khalifa">Burj Khalifa</keyword> with a green boulevard bigger than Mumbai's Marine Drive will form part of a new eastern waterfront to be developed on a wasteland in the country's financial capital, to news agency PTI. These grand plans are part of a dream project of Nitin <keyword id="6361025" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gadkari">Gadkari</keyword>, the union minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, who sees the <keyword id="386705" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="MUmbai-port">Mumbai Port</keyword> Trust as the "richest landlord" of the city and wants to give a makeover to its huge swathes of industrial wasteland. "In Mumbai, we are the number one landlord. The iconic Taj Hotel, the Ballard Estate, the Reliance building, we (MbPT) are the owners. There are beautiful plans to develop the huge land with the port," Gadkari told PTI. The plans are ready and we are awaiting Centre's nod, the Minister said. "We are not giving our land to the builders and investors. We have plans to develop the area...We are making a green, smart road, three times bigger than the Marine Drive. We plan historic landmark bigger than Burj Khalifa. The plan is ready, we are waiting for the approval from the Cabinet," Gadkari said. MbPT, which was earlier called the Bombay Port Trust, is one of the largest public land holders in Mumbai city and has been operating the port since 1873. It is one of the top 12 major ports in the country. "About 500 hectares is proposed to be developed with a mix of port operations, business, office, commercial, retail, entertainment, community projects and convention centres, etc," a top official said. A key feature of the plan is a 7-km long marine drive between Mazagaon Docks and <keyword id="157686" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Wadala">Wadala</keyword>, much bigger than the existing Marine Drive. The proposed projects also include creation of spaces for community recreation and engagement, maritime museum, marinas etc. Mumbai Port has already invited global tender from consulting firms for master plan and infrastructure design of the port. The Centre had earlier sup a committee under the chairmanship of R Jadhav for preparing a roadmap for development of Port's waterfront and land, which has already been submitted to the Ministry of Shipping. Gadkari said the <keyword id="6390662" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="shipping-ministry">Shipping Ministry</keyword> has plans to develop other ports too. "We are planning development of <keyword id="6354925" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kolkata">Kolkata</keyword> Port. We are also making smart city at <keyword id="209584" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kandla-Port">Kandla Port</keyword>," he said. The Minister said there was no paucity of resources nor land as there is "one lakh hectares of land" among ports and the government has already come up with ambitious Rs 14 lakh crore Sagarmala project for port-led development of the country. Major ports in India have between them 2.64 lakh acres of land. A blueprint for utilisation of land available with 12 major ports was underway while consultants are also in the process of submitting a report on how to utilise 1.98 lakh acres of submerged land with ports, according to news agency PTI. India's 12 major ports handle approximately 61 per cent of the country's total cargo traffic. The roadmap for port land assumes significance, given a CAG report which observed that major ports had failed to utilise close to half of the total land under their possession. "Land measuring 22,949.82 acres was identified for future activities by ports while 13,045.56 acres were yet to be earmarked for any future activity," the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) had said in a report. According to the audit report on 'Land Management in Major Ports', out of the total land holding of 77,191.14 acres, title deeds were not available for 34,943.41 acres representing 45.27 per cent of the total land portfolio. The 12 major ports are Kandla, Mumbai, JNPT, Marmugao, New Mangalore, Cochin, Chennai, Ennore, VO Chidambarnar, Visakhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata (including <keyword id="54017" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="haldia">Haldia</keyword>). The cabinet last year had approved a policy for award of waterfront and associated land to port dependent industries in major ports.

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