The Ministry of Highways plans to float Cabinet notes on three key issues that have blocked road building as it tries to revive the moribund sector.
These 3 action areas are to have the liberty to choose the mode of project implementation, the authority to modify the model concession agreement (MCA) and the option for concessionaires to exit fully after construction.
The Ministry plans to first file a proposal to the Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister, Nitin Gadkari, who is reportedly looking at ways to reduce administrative layers in the decision-making process.
Officials had earlier said that increased power to choose between public-private partnerships (PPPs) and cash contracts (engineering, procurement and construction, or EPC) at the time of awarding of projects would help encourage private sector participation which has gone down drastically.
Further, the move would help projects get awarded faster.
The official said that "Conditions prevalent in highway projects are best judged by those implementing it. This is why we want the power to make amendments to the MCA to be delegated to us instead of having to go through the Cabinet or inter-ministerial groups (IMG)."