Budget 2018: From roads to air travel, govt focuses on urbanisation

The FM announced that the Centre would leverage the India Infrastructure Finance Corporation Limited to help finance major infrastructure projects

Aspiring for urbanisation and enhanced public investment in social infrastructure, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley made a slew of announcements for road & air connectivity and improved financing measures for the same. The Union Budget allowed National Highway Authority of India (NHAI)eate Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) to monetise its road assets. At the same time, budgetary provision to regional air connectivity scheme was increased by five times. 

"Government’s estimated budgetary and extra-budgetary expenditure on infrastructure for 2018-19 is being increased to Rs 5.97 trillion against the estimated expenditure of Rs 4.94 trillion in 2017-18,” Jaitley said in his Budget Speech.

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