原创 Nadamuni Says

Bemoaning the lack of good infrastructure in India doesn't do much to solve the problem. However, it sounds like the squeaky wheel is finally getting the grease. With so much riding on the ability of the country to sustain the growth momentum that BPO and now engineering outsourcing will bring, it was not too surprising to see the headline in The Economic Times (14-11-06) about India picking up the pace of infrastructure development.

When the completion of the golden quadrilateral system of roads was put on hold sometime ago, it seemed that the pace of investment in infrastructure had taken a back seat to other more populist investments. However the news that the Centre is mapping out $350 billion (~Rs.1,593,200 crore) worth of road, rail and power projects for the next 6 to 7 years is a step in the right direction. The government is also supporting more private investment in these capital intensive projects. The big unknown is how much risk private investors are willing to take to invest in these projects where they could face problems similar to those that came up in Dhabol, Maharashtra for example. Will they walk the walk after talking the talk?

So the question this week is, what do you think about private foreign investment in infrastructure. Should there be limits? Should there be a revenue sharing agreement? What makes the most sense for India today? Write and share your thoughts.