August 5, 2022
Md Nadimul Haque’s Zero Hour mention on delays and cost overruns in infrastructure projects funded by the Union government
Sir, my Zero Hour mention is on delay and cost overrun in infrastructure projects. A lot of Central infrastructure projects, from smart cities to roads, to railways and petroleum projects are currently in operation. However, the
Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation’s data shows that out of 1514 projects, as many as 713 projects were delayed as of June, 2022. The total cost overrun for them was 22 per cent higher than their original cost. It further showed that the gestation period has not been reported.The project agencies are not reporting revised cost estimates and commissioning schedules for many projects, which suggests that time or cost overrun figures are under-reported. The average time or cost overrun for these delayed projects is 42 months. Sir, in West Bengal alone, there are 11 projects delayed by five years and above. The Raniganj master plan, the Durgapur-Haldia gas pipeline
project, Tarakeswar-Bishnupur new broad-gauge railway line and construction of metro railway links from Baranagar to Barrackpore to Dakshineswar are some of them. The reasons for time overrun, as reported by various agencies, include covid-19 disruption, labour shortage, inflation, delay in release of funds by the Government, lack of infrastructure support and linkages, delay in tendering, ordering and equipment supply and law and order problems. Sir, the Government should hasten the implementation of these projects, and this can be possible only if there is faster release of funds from the Centre as well as availability of abundant labour is ensured. Hence, I urge upon the Government to look into this important matter and take necessary action.
