Indias journey toward
becoming a global economic powerhouse is intrinsically tied to its infrastructure
development sector. Over the past few years, the country has witnessed remarkable growth
in infrastructure projects that have significantly contributed to its economic expansion,
urbanization, and improved quality of life for its citizens.
The role of infrastructure in
shaping a nations progress cannot be overstated. It serves as the backbone upon
which economic growth and future development rest. In line with the vision of achieving a
$40 trillion economy and transitioning from a developing to a developed economy by 2047,
Indias infrastructure development plays a pivotal role.
Infrastructure Development in
India
The post-independence era saw
the Indian government prioritize infrastructure development as a means to foster economic
growth and social progress. The green revolution, the establishment of industrial
corridors, and investments in transportation networks were among the earliest initiatives
aimed at building a robust foundation for economic development.
However, it wasnt until
the liberalization of the economy in the 1990s that the infrastructure sector gained
renewed focus. Public-private partnerships (PPPs) emerged as a key strategy to bridge the
funding gap and expedite project implementation. The creation of dedicated institutions
like the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the National Investment and
Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) further facilitated project financing and execution. The
National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP), introduced in 2019 emphasizes social and
infrastructure projects including energy, roads, railways, and urban development projects
worth INR 102 Lakh Crores. NIP is complemented by the PM Gati-Shakti Master Plan which is
dedicated to improving Indias logistics network. In India Budget 2023-24, the Indian
government emphasized the need for increased spending in the infrastructure sector and
nearly trebled its infrastructure spending to 3.3% of GDP compared to its spending in
2019-20. The Budget has allocated INR 75000 Crores for 100 projects deemed critical to
improving the overall multimodal logistics infrastructure.
The development of modern
highways, railways, airports, and seaports has enhanced connectivity within the country
and with the global market. The Golden Quadrilateral project, which connects the four
major cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata, stands as a testament to Indias
commitment to improving transportation infrastructure.
The Sagarmala Programme that
envisions reducing logistics cost of bulk commodities for domestic and international trade
entails investing Rs. 8.5 Lakh Crore to set up new mega ports, modernizing existing ports,
developing 14 Coastal Economic Zones (CEZs) and enhancing port connectivity via road,
rail, multi-modal logistics parks, pipelines & waterways with the aim of boosting
exports by US$110 billion and generating around 10,000,000 direct and indirect jobs.
Currently, a total of 802 projects worth Rs. 5.53 Lakh Crore are already underway of
Sagarmala Programme.
The Bharatmala project with
estimated cost of Rs. 6,92,324 Crore is an umbrella program for the highways sector in
India that focuses on development of about 26,000 km length of economic corridors, which
along with golden quadrilateral and north-south and east-west corridors are expected to
carry majority of the freight traffic on roads. Further, about 8,000 km of inter corridors
and about 7,500 km of feeder routes have been identified for improving effectiveness of
economic corridors. Presently 10,000 kilometre project including national highways
development project worth Rs.1.5 Lakh Crore is under the implementation stage.
The countrys electricity
consumption is projected to reach 1,280 Terawatt-hour (TWh) by 2040. Further, India has
also committed to generating a 40% growth in non-fossil-fuel based energy sources by 2030.
As of July 2023, India had 130.87 GW capacities of installed renewables. The expansion of
renewable energy sources, particularly solar and wind power has bolstered Indias
energy security and sustainability goals. Initiatives like the International Solar
Alliance demonstrate the countrys leadership in addressing climate change through
infrastructure development.
Water Infrastructure
The drinking water flagship
scheme under Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) with a combined allocation of Rs 6.47 Lakh Crore
(JJM-Rural: Rs.3.6 Lakh Crore, JJM-Urban: Rs.2.87 Lakh Crore) are progressing well. Recent
updates on Jal Shakti Ministry website as on August 22, 2023 confirms that since the start
of the scheme, almost 9.65 Crore new tap connections has been provided to rural households
in the country. The coverage of tap water connection on pan India basis has increased to
reach 67.02% from merely 16.82% at the beginning of the scheme. It has covered 88,730
Panchayats spread across 1,85,033 villages in the country as they have started getting
assured clean tap water supply of adequate quantity. 9 states & UTs in the country
(Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Telangana, Goa, Puducherry, Daman & Diu,
and Andaman & Nicobar) have already achieved 100% household coverage and another 6
states (Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Mizoram, Sikkim, and Uttarakhand) have achieved between
80% to 96% coverage of their population.
At the time of announcement of
Jal Jeevan Mission, 3.23 Crore (17%) rural households were reported to have tap water
connections. So far, as reported by States/UTs as on 22 August 2023, around 9.65 Crore
additional rural households have been provided with tap water connections under JJM. Thus,
out of 19.47 Crore rural households in the country, around 12.89 Crore (67.2%) households
are reported to have tap water supply in their homes and the remaining 6.35 Crore are
likely to be covered by 2024.
For the financial year
2023-24, the JJM has been allocated Rs.70,000 Crore, 27% more than the revised estimates
of 2022-23, in order to expedite the water supply infrastructure development to achieve
the target of ‘Har Ghar Jal (water for every household) by 2024.
The Namami Gange Programme was
launched in June 2014 for a period up to 31st March, 2021 to rejuvenate River Ganga and
its tributaries with a budgetary outlay of Rs.20,000 Crore. Considering the need and
spread of the Programme, Government of India has further approved Namami Gange Mission-II
with a budgetary outlay of Rs.22,500 Crore till 2026, including projects for existing
liabilities (Rs.11,225 Crore) and new projects (Rs.11,275 Crore).
So far, until 31st December
2022, a total of 409 projects have been taken up at an estimated cost of Rs. 32,912.40
Crore, out of which 232 projects have been completed and made operational. Majority of the
projects pertain to creation of sewage infrastructure as the untreated domestic/industrial
wastewater is the main reason for pollution in the river. 177 sewerage infrastructure
projects have been taken up with a cost of Rs.26,673.06 Crore for creation &
rehabilitation of 5,269.87 Million Litres per Day (MLD) of Sewage Treatment Plant (STP)
capacity and laying of around 5,213.49 KM sewerage network. Among these, 99 sewerage
projects have been completed resulting in creation & rehabilitation of 2,043.05 MLD of
STP capacity and laying of 4,260.95 KM sewerage network. In order to sustain the continued
operation of the sewage treatment infrastructure, Hybrid Annuity based PPP mode has also
been adopted.
The Atal Mission for
Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation 2.0 (AMRUT 2.0) scheme was launched on 01 October,
2021 for the period of 05 years i.e. from the financial year 2021-22 to the financial year
2025-26. AMRUT 2.0 is designed to provide universal coverage of water supply through
functional taps to all households in all the statutory towns in the country and coverage
of sewerage/septage management in 500 cities covered in the first phase of the AMRUT
scheme.
The total indicative outlay
for AMRUT 2.0 is Rs.2,99,000 Crore including Central outlay of Rs.76,760 Crore for five
years. This outlay includes funding of Rs.22,000 Crore (Rs.10,000 Crore as Central
Assistance) for ongoing projects of AMRUT till March 2023. The Central share of funds
allocated to each State and Union Territory (UT) for AMRUT 2.0 projects stands at
Rs.66,750 Crore.
Atal Bhujal Yojana is being
implemented in water stressed Gram Panchayats of 229 administrative Blocks/Talukas in 80
districts of 7 States, viz., Haryana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra,
Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh for a period of 5 years from 01.04.2020. The scheme aims at
community led sustainable ground water management through convergence of activities.
The scheme is being
implemented through active participation of the communities in the participating States in
various activities such as monitoring and disseminating ground water data, water
budgeting, preparation of Gram Panchayat wise Water Security Plans having demand side as
well as supply interventions proposed and their implementation through convergence of
ongoing schemes and IEC activities related to sustainable groundwater management.
As on July 2023, the fund of
Rs.1688.90 Crore have so far been released under the scheme to 7 participating States, as
per performance based upon achievements of certain pre-defined indicators.
Growth Prospects in
Infrastructure Sector
Some of the recent government
initiatives and investments in the Infrastructure sector are as follows:
• Capital
investment outlay for infrastructure is being increased by 33% to Rs.10 Lakh Crore (US$
122 billion), which would be 3.3 per cent of GDP and almost three times the outlay in
2019-20.
• AMRUT
2.0 is allocated Rs.2.99 Lakh Crore for next 5 years
• For the
financial year 2023-24, the Jal Jeevan Mission has been allocated Rs.70,000 Crore
• Namami
Gange Mission-II has a budgetary outlay of Rs.22,500 Crore till 2026
• As per
the Union Budget 2023-24, a capital outlay of Rs. 2.40 Lakh Crore (US$ 29 billion) has
been provided for the Railways, which is the highest ever outlay and about 9 times the
outlay made in 2013-14.
•
Infrastructure Finance Secretariat is being established to enhance opportunities for
private investment in infrastructure that will assist all stakeholders for more private
investment in infrastructure, including railways, roads, urban infrastructure, and power.
• The
Government has decided to continue the 50-year interest free loan to state governments for
one more year to spur investment in infrastructure and to incentivize them for
complementary policy actions, with a significantly enhanced outlay of Rs.1.3 Lakh Crore
(US$ 16 billion).
-family:Arial;color:windowtext>
• 100
critical transport infrastructure projects, for last and first mile connectivity for
ports, coal, steel, fertilizer, and food grains sectors have been identified and will be
taken up on priority with investment of Rs. 75,000 Crore (US$ 9 billion), including Rs.
15,000 Crore (US$ 1.8 billion) from private sources.
• 50
additional airports, heliports, water aerodromes and advance landing grounds will be
revived for improving regional air connectivity.
• An Urban
Infrastructure Development Fund (UIDF) will be established through use of priority sector
lending shortfall, which will be managed by the National Housing Bank, and will be used by
public agencies to create urban infrastructure in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.
• States
will be encouraged to leverage resources from the grants of the 15th Finance Commission,
as well as existing schemes, to adopt appropriate user charges while accessing the UIDF.
• For
realizing the vision of “Make AI in India and Make AI work for India”, three
centres of excellence for Artificial Intelligence will be set-up in top educational
institutions.
• The
Digital Public infrastructure for agriculture will be built as an open source, open
standard and inter operable public good that will enable inclusive, farmer-centric
solutions through relevant information services for crop planning and health, improved
access to farm inputs, credit, and insurance, help for crop estimation, market
intelligence, and support for growth of agri-tech industry and start-ups.
• Skill
India International Centres to be set up across different States to skill youth for
international opportunities.
• Central
Processing Centre to be setup for faster response to companies through centralized
handling of various forms filed with field offices under the Companies Act.
• Since
2016-17, the budget for the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, the flagship housing scheme of the
government, has increased 280% from Rs. 20,936 Crore (US$ 2.5 billion) in the revised
estimates of 2016-17 to Rs. 79,726 Crore (US$ 9.6 billion) in the latest 2023-24 budget.
• The Awas
Yojana budget estimate for 2023-24 constitutes an allocation of Rs. 25,103 Crore
(US$ 3 billion) to Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban and Rs. 54,487 Crore (US$ 6.5 billion)
to Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin.
The growing population,
economic development and increased commercial activities and faster pace of urbanization
will see hundreds of new cities to be developed over the next decade. Over the next 10
years, demand for urban freight is predicted to increase by 140%. Final-mile freight
transit in Indian cities accounts for 50% of the total logistics expenditures in the
countrys increasing e-commerce supply chains. India is expected to become the
third-largest construction market globally.
According to a 2022 Frost
& Sullivan report, the Indian water and wastewater treatment market will likely reach
Rs.23,250 Crore ($2.08 billion) by 2025 from Rs.10,790 Crore ($1.31 billion) in 2020,
registering growth at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.7%. The report also ranked
India as the sixth largest market for environmental technologies in the world, with
subsector rankings of second for water/wastewater management.
The overall infrastructure
capex is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 11.4% over 2021-26 driven by spending on water
supply, transport, and urban infrastructure. Investment in infrastructure contributed
around 5% of the GDP in the tenth five-year plan as against 9% in the eleventh five-year
plan. Further, US$ 1 trillion investment in infrastructure was proposed by the Indias
planning commission during the 12th five-year plan, with 40% of the funds coming from the
private sector.
Established Governance and
Robust Risk Management
The Companys governance
structure is characterized by clearly defined roles and responsibilities, which empower
the Management to effectively identify, evaluate, and capitalize on business opportunities
while proficiently managing risks. A comprehensive framework is also in place for
strategic planning, execution, and performance tracking of the business plan. This
includes a well-structured Business Risk Management process.
The organizations risk
management framework is both sturdy and effective, addressing a spectrum of operational
and business risks. Senior management routinely examines significant risk areas at defined
intervals. Supported by comprehensive policies and protocols, the organization expertly
recognizes, mitigates, and supervises risks at various levels. Through these proactive
risk management initiatives, the Company ensures a seamless realization of strategic
business objectives.
Environment Consciousness
SPML Infra Limited is
committed to upholding a secure and sustainable workplace, concurrently safeguarding the
environment. The organizations relentless pursuit involves fortifying safety and
health measures by leveraging incident data analysis, stakeholder input, compliance with
evolving laws and regulations, and the adoption of industry-best practices to steer our
endeavors. This commitment is seamlessly woven into our management systems and operations,
aligning health, safety, and environmental considerations. Through an unwavering quest for
enhancement, our objective is to forge a future that is not only more dependable but also
environmentally conscious for all.
Nurturing a Culture of
Excellence
The Companys strategy
for performance management revolves around fostering meaningful and high-calibre
discussions that address the subjects of significance to its workforce. This approach
involves a versatile framework cantered on dialogues initiated by employees, accompanied
by tools to bolster skill sets. Both managers and employees prioritize their
contributions, strengths, and personal growth at the heart of these conversations.
Through its distinctive
performance management methodology, SPML cultivates a culture of higher performance. This
culture propels its employees to tap into their maximum potential, ultimately propelling
the Company to higher standards. . Performance remains a primary catalyst guiding the
Companys human resource decisions, underscoring its ongoing commitment to instill a
culture of continuous learning.
The Company consistently
utilizes its digital learning ecosystem to provide robust support to its employees as they
embark on their developmental paths. Project teams benefit from synergy-building programs,
while an overarching leadership program operates to cultivate prospective leaders in
different departments.
With unwavering commitment,
SPML persists in capitalizing on its digital learning platform, to effectively engage
employees across all groups. The Company remains dedicated to embracing diverse learning
models, expediting the developmental journey of its workforce.
Prevention of sexual
harassment at workplace
SPML believes in providing an
equal employment opportunity to all section of the society. The Company is committed to
creating a healthy working environment that enables employees to work without fear of
prejudice and gender bias. As an organisation, the Company is dedicated to ensuring that
each employee is accorded dignity and respect, and operates within a supportive work
environment that fosters professional advancement and upholds equal opportunities for
everyone. The Company has zero tolerance towards any act on the part of any employee,
which may fall under the ambit of ‘sexual harassment at workplace, and is fully
committed to uphold and maintain the dignity of every woman employee working in the
Company.
Further, to provide an
empowering and enabling atmosphere to women employees, the Company has continuously
endeavoured to build the work culture, which promotes the respect and dignity of all women
employees across the organisation. The Company has formulated a comprehensive policy on
prevention, prohibition and redressal against sexual harassment of women at workplace,
which is also in accordance with the provisions of the Sexual Harassment of Women at
Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (‘POSH).
Internal Control Mechanism
The internal controls of the
Company are well-matched with the scale and intricacy of its operations. These controls
underwent thorough testing over the course of the year, and no significant weaknesses in
design or execution were identified. The Company has implemented strong policies and
procedures that, among other things, guarantee ethical business conduct, protection of
assets, and punctual creation of dependable financial data, accuracy and comprehensiveness
in maintaining accounting records, and the prevention and identification of frauds and
errors.
Cautionary Statement
Some statements within the
context of Management Discussion and Analysis are forward-looking and are presented as
mandated by relevant laws and regulations. It is important to note that the Companys
future performance might be influenced by a multitude of factors that could deviate from
the Directors envisioned future performance and outlook.
“SPML Infra is becoming a
future-ready water infrastructure company that will continue to innovate and support its
clients to achieve their sustainable water management goals.”
+91-9892691696
