Kamal Nath confident of India’s infrastructure achievements

Kamal Nath, India’s Minister for Road Transport and Highways, expressed confidence in India’s ability to overcome the infrastructure bottleneck with the help of private and foreign investment in the sector.

“We’re offering infrastructure projects on a built operate transfer (BOT) basis to foreign companies and we’re trying to make the sector both attractive and competitive,” he explained while addressing members of the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce this morning at a breakfast meeting organized at a hotel in downtown Toronto.

Mr. Nath said that infrastructure – and especially roads and highways – is a major need for India to sustain and enhance its economic growth rates. He said the sector represented an investment opportunity of $50 billion and most of the projects were being offered on a Built Own Transfer (BOT) basis.

India’s minister is spearheading the National Highway Development Program that aims to build or upgrade 47,000 kms of highways by 2015, the biggest such plan opening up for investment anywhere in the world. The minister has also set for himself a tough target: To build 20 kms of roads every day.

Mr. Nath emphasized that Canada and India share a multi-level, multi-faceted partnership and the bilateral ties would scale new peaks because of a positive outlook. Answering a question about the endemic delays in the execution of infrastructure projects, especially related to the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, Mr. Nath assured that all the requisite infrastructure would be in place before the Games begin in October 2010.

Earlier, Ms. Asha Luthra, President, Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce, welcomed the minister to Toronto. Leading community leaders of the Indo-Canadian community attended the event.