Delivering Infrastructure at Scale: India’s Path to a Viksit Bharat

By Sumita Dawra
Recognising the critical importance of infrastructure spending to boost GDP, create jobs and have a multiplier impact on the economy, Central government dramatically increased spending on infrastructure capital expenditure over the last decade - more than quintupling it from around Rs 2 trillion in 2014-15 to Rs 11.1 trillion in 2024-25. Recent trends indicate infrastructure capital spending has been growing at an annual rate of more than 38 percent, with a clear focus on developing both physical and digital infrastructure networks. 
To fully reap the benefits of these large allocations, it is essential that infrastructure projects progress at an efficient pace, without time and cost over-runs. Given their long gestation periods, such projects not only require significant and sustained financing, but also depend on timely clearances related to land acquisition, environmental approvals, and socio-economic considerations. Many of these approvals involve multiple regulatory authorities, local bodies, district-level administration – making coordination and time-bound decision-making critical to successful project execution.   
To ensure effective coordination and timely clearances for infrastructure projects, the Government of India launched the PRAGATI (Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation) portal in 2015. PRAGATI is a digitized platform for real-time monitoring of big-ticket infrastructure projects, receiving electronic updates from executing agencies, Ministries, States and UTs. The Prime Minister chairs high-level coordination meetings on a monthly basis - selecting projects facing implementation delays, engaging directly with Ministries, States, and other authorities to identify bottlenecks, and issuing clear directions for resolution. 
PRAGATI thus serves as a mechanism to accelerate pending projects facing time and cost over-runs – for instance a metro-rail project delayed for years for want of land clearances from the Municipal authority, or a major gas pipeline project facing land hurdle across multiple states, or projects awaiting a long-awaited environmental clearance, etc. On 31 December 2025, the Prime Minister chaired the 50th PRAGATI meeting, during which five critical infrastructure projects with a cumulative investment of Rs 40,000 crore were reviewed in a single sitting. Overall, the PRAGATI mechanism has facilitated the fast-tracking of stalled projects worth a cumulative Rs 85 trillion so far.   
Drawing on insights from the PRAGATI experience – particularly the recurring hurdles that delay project completion and often result in cost over-runs - the Government of India launched the PM Gati Shakti (PMGS) National Master Plan (NMP) in October 2021. PMGS provides a GIS-based framework for integrated infrastructure planning by bringing together data layers from infrastructure, economic and social sector Ministries, and from the 36 States and UTs in the country. This digitised, data-based interface enables planners to visualise infrastructure assets, resources, cables and grids, besides other assets holistically – thus scientifically planning infrastructure connectivity in the country. 
Enabling a convergence approach to planning by providing easy visibility of data, PMGS allows early identification of required clearances at planning stage itself - thus facilitating a collaborative planning of infrastructure projects and saving months that would otherwise be lost in obtaining approvals. This transformative planning approach not only enhances speed and efficiency, but also prevents duplication of existing infrastructure assets, ensures complementarity of assets across various modes of transportation – thereby embedding multimodality into infrastructure planning. As a result, projects are designed to connect India’s growth clusters more effectively to markets, leading to reduced logistics costs. Consequently, infrastructure planning is made more efficient, while also delivering outcomes that enhance logistics performance - supporting both ease of living and ease of doing business. 
When the Jagdishpur - Haldia & Bokaro - Dhamra Pipeline Project was being planned on the PMGS portal for instance, the two major issues identified at planning stage included the clearance required from Forest Department for a small extent of the spur line, and also pending disbursement of compensation for a length of 83 kms – enabling the planning authorities to easily identify and address these issues before taking up the project for sanction. 
Similarly, in planning of Four-laning of NH from Goa-Karnataka Border to Kundapur section on the GIS-portal, a road encroachment was identified as a potential issue, due to the visibility of habitations along with the data-attributes on ownership of land through which the road had to cross. While planning the Mumbai Urban Transport Project [MUTP] – Phase 2 on PMGS portal, the Ministry of Railways could view the pending land acquisition of small extents of land that had the potential to delay the project later once it commenced. 
In this manner, planning agencies are making use of the PMGS mechanism to bring greater efficiency and speed in project planning and execution – on the lines of the principles of PRAGATI.  Indian Railways has planned its ambitious energy corridor on PMGS portal, with a dedicated rail network connecting areas of coal production to consumption points at thermal plants and thus ensuring energy security of the country. Congestion of these routes were identified through the GIS-portal and strengthening of the route for seamless movement of energy material planned.  
The Gati Shakti National Master Plan also helped plan the green energy corridor between Ladakh and Haryana, enabling transmission of solar energy production in the high-altitude region of Ladakh to the northern plains, navigating topographical challenges, minimising interface of the transmission lines with forest and wildlife habitats - thus preventing issues that could potentially delay projects.  
Whether it involves large expressway projects with investments running into thousands of crore rupees, urban logistics initiatives in major cities of Varanasi and Kanpur, or improving connectivity between major ports and their hinterland - the Gati Shakti principles are fostering a ‘whole-of-government’ approach at the project planning stage. Enhanced visibility across multiple data-layers is improving planning efficiency, minimising disruption to ecologically sensitive areas, avoiding land acquisition likely to result in litigation, and enabling infrastructure to be planned with future requirements in mind. 
Building on the success of the PRAGATI mechanism in coordinated review, monitoring and acceleration of infrastructure projects, and with PM Gati Shakti demonstrating a more integrated and planned approach to infrastructure execution, India is now well-positioned to share its learnings at the global level, as part of its economic diplomacy –  offering a model for more efficient and coordinated infrastructure planning that is data-driven, coordinated and results in timely implementation.  
(The author is the former Union Labour Secretary and Special Secretary (Logistics), Govt of India)