 "439 infrastructure projects show cost overrun of Rs 4.38 trillion")
As many as 439 infrastructure projects, each entailing investment of Rs 150 crore or more, have been hit by cost overruns totalling more than Rs 4.38 lakh crore, according to a report.
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation monitors infrastructure projects of Rs 150 crore and above. Of 1,679 such projects, 439 projects reported cost overruns and 541 projects were delayed.
"Total original cost of implementation of the 1,679 projects was Rs 22,29,544.27 crore and their anticipated completion cost is likely to be Rs 26,67,593.85 crore, which reflects overall cost overruns of 4,38,049.58 crore (19.65% of original cost)," the ministry's latest report for November 2021 said.
According to the report, the expenditure incurred on these projects till November 2021 is Rs 12,88,558.49 crore, which is 48.30 per cent of the anticipated cost of the projects.
However, the report said that the number of delayed projects decreases to 385 projects if delay is calculated on the basis of latest schedule of completion.
Further, for 835 projects neither the year of commissioning nor the tentative gestation period has been reported.
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Out of the 541 delayed projects, 90 projects have overall delay in the range of 1-12 months, 113 projects have been delayed for 13-24 months, 212 projects for 25-60 months and 126 projects have delays of 61 months and above.
The average time overrun in these 541 projects is 32.22 months.
Reasons for time overruns as reported by various project implementing agencies include delay in land acquisition, delay in obtaining forest and environment clearances, and lack of infrastructure support and linkages.
Delay in tie-up for project financing, delay in finalisation of detailed engineering, change in scope, delay in tendering, ordering and equipment supply, and law and order problems are among the other reasons.
The report also cited state-wise lockdowns due to COVID-19 as a 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 suggests that time/cost overrun figures are under-reported, it added.