Railway Budget 2014: PPP to fund major infra projects

Railways in one of the sectors in which there is crucial requirement of funding in huge amounts. Out of 676 projects which have been proposed till now, only 356 projects were completed leaving more than 300 projects in the pipeline. Four projects which are more than thirty years old are yet to be completed.

So, what is the reason for this? Well, unfortunately it is the lack of funding. It is expected that around Rs 9 L Cr is needed for the funding of the ambitious Diamond Quadrilateral project. To achieve the overall connectivity through Diamond Quadrilateral and make Indian railway network as the largest freight carrier of the world, railway department needs a huge amount of funding from the central government.

And this cannot be achieved by the government alone. Thus, Private Public Partnership model evolve as the most feasible option for these projects. When the private investors fund the projects through PPP model, the financial burden on the government will be reduced.