New Delhi: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday tabled Economic Survey 2023-24 in Parliament, which said India has witnessed significant growth expansion in physical and digital connectivity and social infrastructure, including sanitation and water supply helping to improve the quality of life of the people with increased public investment over the last five years.
The foremost among the responses initiated by the Union government to overcome the pandemic-driven slowdown in the economy was an increase in capital expenditure, aimed particularly at the creation of high-quality physical and social infrastructure facilities. Keeping the momentum going over the last five years, the survey says the capital expenditure of the government has seen an almost three-fold increase in Financial Year-2024, relative to Financial Year-2020 levels. It added that the major beneficiaries of this step-up are key foundational assets like roads and railways.
Road infrastructure: The Economic Survey observes that strategic planning and step-up in public investment have resulted in the upgradation of the road network system into a resilient and efficient infrastructure. The capital investment by the government and private sector rose from 0.4 per cent in FY-15 to about 1.0 per cent of GDP (around Rs 3.01 lakh crore) in FY-24. The sector has attracted its highest-ever private investment in FY24 as the private sector capitalises on a conducive policy environment, mentions the Survey.
“To further enhance logistic efficiency, the Economic Survey has mentioned that the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRT&H) has dedicated Multi-Modal Logistics Parks (MMLP). It says that a total of six multimodal logistics parks (MMLPs) have been awarded until FY24, and Rs 2,505 crore have been awarded for dedicated multimodal logistics parks (MMLPs) in FY24. Furthermore, it stated, seven MMLPs are planned to be awarded in FY25,” the survey states.
Railways infrastructure: According to the Economic Survey, Indian Railways, with over 68,584 route km (as of March 31, 2024) and 12.54 lakh employees (as of April 1, 2024), is the fourth largest network in the world under single management. The survey states that the capital expenditure on railways has increased by 77 per cent over the past five years (Rs 2.62 lakh crore in FY-24) with significant investments in the construction of new lines, gauge conversion and doubling.
“The railways has achieved its highest-ever production for both locomotives and wagons in FY-24. 51 pairs of Vande Bharat have been introduced until March 2024. The fast pace of infrastructure augmentation has been the result of a substantial increase in financial allocation along with close project monitoring and regular follow-up with stakeholders for expeditious land acquisition and clearances,” the Survey observes.
The survey has also mentioned the initiatives undertaken by railways to provide a clean environment in and around railway stations and trains, such as the replacement of conventional toilets with bio-toilets on coaches leading to clean tracks, segregation of biodegradable or non-biodegradable waste, solid waste management and discouraging use of single-use plastic.
