An official report has revealed that as many as 421 infrastructure projects, each of which requires an investment of Rs 150 crore or more, faced a substantial cost overrun exceeding Rs 4.40 lakh crore in November 2023. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation monitors these projects, and the latest data sheds light on the scale of the issue.

Project Statistics and Cost Overruns

Out of a total of 1,831 projects, 421 experienced cost overruns, while 845 projects faced delays. The original cost of implementation was Rs 25,10,577.59 crore, with an anticipated completion cost of Rs 29,50,997.33 crore, reflecting an alarming 17.54% overall cost overrun.

Breakdown of Delayed Projects

Of the 845 delayed infra projects, 204 face delays of 1-12 months, 198 are delayed for 13-24 months, 322 projects experience delays of 25-60 months, and 121 projects have been delayed for over 60 months. The average time overrun across these projects is a significant 36.64 months.

Reasons for Time Overruns

Various project implementing agencies report multiple reasons for time overruns. These include delays in land acquisition, obtaining clearances, insufficient infrastructure support, and linkages. Other contributing factors encompass delays in project financing, detailed engineering finalization, scope changes, tendering, ordering and equipment supply, law and order issues, and the impact of state-wise COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.

Reporting Discrepancies

The report notes that project executing agencies often fail to report revised cost estimates and commissioning schedules for many projects. This suggests that the reported time and cost overrun figures may be underrepresented, pointing to a potential discrepancy in the data.

(With PTI Inputs)