Nifty Infra index hits 7-year high after govt announced Bharatmala project

L&T, NCC, IRB Infra, KNR Constructions, Ashoka Buildcon, Sadbhav Engineering, Simplex Infra and Gayatri Projects were up in the range of 5% to 9% on the NSE

Shares of infrastructure companies were in focus with the Nifty Infrastructure index hitting nearly seven-year high on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), after the Cabinet clears Rs 7 lakh crore Bharatmala project. The announcement came after market hours on Tuesday.

Larsen & Toubro (L&T), NCC, IRB Infrastructure, GMR Infrastructure, Siemens, Engineers India and Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) from the Nifty Infrastructure index were trading higher by upto 6% on the NSE.

KNR Constructions, Ashoka Buildcon, Sadbhav Engineering, Simplex Infrastructures and Gayatri Projects from the non-index stocks were up in the range of 5% to 9%.

At 12:07 AM; Nifty Infrastructure index was up 1.9% at 3,541, as compared to 0.55% gain in the benchmark index. The infra index hit an intra-day high of 3,544, its highest level since November 2010.

The Union Cabinet on Tuesday cleared the Bharatmala project to construct 20,000 km of highways connecting western and eastern parts of the country at an estimated investment of Rs 7 lakh crore.

In the first phase to be undertaken over three-five years, the project would cost Rs 5.5 lakh crore. The project would be funded through various sources, including Rs 2.09 lakh crore from the market, Rs 1.06 lakh crore through private investment and Rs 2.19 lakh crore from the central road fund or toll collection.

“Overall, we believe cabinet approval is a positive step and provides a multiyear visibility for the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) as only around 10,000 km is left in the National Highways Development Project (NHDP) program. Investment in road sector has multi-fold implications and can materially revive the capex cycle along with potential acceleration in housing, railways and defence,” Antique Stock Broking said in a note.

COMPANY	LATEST	PREV CLOSE	GAIN(%)
MADHUCON PROJ.	29.75	27.20	9.4
ASHOKA BUILDCON	208.50	192.35	8.4
SIMPLEX INFRA	503.70	466.85	7.9
SADBHAV ENGG.	312.60	290.35	7.7
KNR CONSTRUCT.	241.60	224.70	7.5
GMR INFRA.	18.40	17.40	5.8
IRB INFRA.DEVL.	225.50	214.35	5.2
LARSEN & TOUBRO	1199.20	1140.00	5.2
NCC	106.70	101.45	5.2
C & C CONSTRN.	58.70	55.95	4.9
SKIL INFRASTR	35.30	33.65	4.9
PATEL ENGG.	79.45	75.75	4.9
GAYATRI PROJECTS	196.25	187.65	4.6
IL&FS TRANSPORT	83.95	80.60	4.2
ENGINEERS INDIA	155.85	151.85	2.6