New Delhi, June 26: According to a report, 423 infrastructure projects, each with an investment of Rs 150 crore or more, have been affected at a cost of over Rs 4.95 lakh crore. According to the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation, which monitors infrastructure projects worth Rs 150 crore and above, out of 1,568 projects, 423 reported cost overruns and 721 projects were delayed.
“The total original cost of implementation of 1,568 projects was Rs 21,59,802.67 crore and their estimated completion cost is Rs 26,54,818.05 crore, showing a total cost escalation of Rs 4,95,015.38 crore (22.92 per cent of the original cost)” ” The ministry’s latest report for May 2022 said. According to the report, Rs 13,42,535.22 crore has been spent on these projects till May 2022, which is 50.57 per cent of the estimated cost of the projects.
However, the number of delayed projects comes down to 563 if the delay is calculated based on the latest schedule of completion. Further, it shows that for 569 projects, neither the year of commissioning nor the expected construction period has been reported.
Out of 721 delayed projects, 113 have total delays over a period of 1-12 months, 121 are delayed for 13-24 months, 350 projects for 25-60 months and 137 projects are delayed for 61 months and above. The average time taken in these 721 delayed projects is 43.34 months.
Reasons for overruns reported by various project implementing agencies include delays in land acquisition, delays in obtaining forest and environment clearances, and lack of infrastructure support and linkages. Delays in tie-up for project funding, delays in finalizing detailed engineering, changes in scope, delays in tenders, delays in order and equipment supplies, and law and order problems are among other reasons.
The report also cited the state-wise lockdown due to COVID-19 as the reason for the delay in implementation of these projects. It has also been observed that project agencies are not reporting revised cost estimates and commissioning schedules for many projects, which shows that the time/cost escalation figures are under-reported.
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