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Govt mulls common cop for transport sector

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Vishaka ZadooSidhartha New Delhi
Last Updated : Feb 15 2013 | 4:38 AM IST
The government is planning to put in place a common regulator for the transport sector encompassing roads, the railways, airports and ports.
 
According to senior government officials, the Prime Minister's Committee on Infrastructure is expected to finalise the regulatory issues related to the sector by December-end.
 
The regulator will fix tariffs and toll charges for road stretches under construction at present. The construction of highways is being handled by the National Highways Authority of India.
 
At present, the construction is regulated by concession agreements in case of build operate and transfer (BOT) projects while the road transport and highways department handles the other projects.
 
The committee on infrastructure, however, has to look into the role of the tariff authority for major ports which regulates tariffs at ports under the jurisdiction of the Central government.
 
A suggestion has been made that the tariff authority's role be expanded to cover minor ports. At present, there are 184 minor ports in the country, many of which are operated by private companies.
 
Private players operating major ports have complained of lack of a level-playing field as minor ports are free to set tariffs in the absence of a regulator.
 
There have also been suggestions that the tariff authority's role be expanded to regulate activities other than setting of tariffs, like resolving disputes.
 
A committee of secretaries is already looking into the setting up of an economic regulatory body for airports. The committee on infrastructure is of the opinion that the Airports Authority of India should handle the regulatory issues related to airlines while the transport regulator should be responsible for regulating tariffs for airports.
 
The tariff decisions for airports would not be too different from the issues facing highway or some other sectors, said an official. "A separate regulator would unnecessarily add to the bureaucracy," he added.
 
UNDER A COMMON UMBRELLA
 
  • There have been suggestions that the tariff authority's role be expanded to regulate activities other than setting of tariffs, like resolving disputes
  • The committee on infrastructure says the Airports Authority of India should handle the regulatory issues related to airlines while the transport regulator should be responsible for regulating tariffs for airports
  • The Prime Minister's Committee on Infrastructure is expected to finalise the regulatory issues related to the sector by December-end
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