449 infra projects hit by cost overrun of over Rs 5.01 lakh crore in March: MoSPI

13 May 2024 Evaluate

Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) in its latest report has said that as many as 449 infrastructure projects, each entailing an investment of Rs 150 crore or above, were hit by cost overrun of more than Rs 5.01 lakh crore in March 2024. Out of 1,873 projects, 449 reported cost overrun and 779 projects were delayed.

The report stated that total original cost of implementation of the 1,873 projects was Rs 26,87,535.69 crore and their anticipated completion cost is likely to be Rs 31,88,859.02 crore, which reflects overall cost overrun of Rs 5,01,323.33 crore (18.65 per cent of original cost). The expenditure incurred on these projects till March 2024 is Rs 17,11,648.99 crore, which is 53.68 per cent of the anticipated cost of the projects. However, the number of delayed projects decreased to 567 if delay is calculated on the basis of the latest schedule of completion.

Further, it said that for 393 projects neither the year of commissioning nor the tentative gestation period has been reported. Out of the 779 delayed projects, 202 have overall delays in the range of 1-12 months, 181 have been delayed for 13-24 months, 277 projects for 25-60 months, and 119 projects have been delayed for more than 60 months. The average time overrun in these 779 delayed projects is 36.04 months.

The report noted that reasons for time overrun, as reported by various project implementing agencies, include delay in land acquisition, obtaining forest and environment clearances, and lack of infrastructure support and linkages. Delays in tie-up for project financing, finalisation of detailed engineering, change in scope, tendering, ordering and equipment supply, and law and order problems are among other reasons.