637 Projects Delayed: Land Issues, Financial Difficulties | Gadkari

New Delhi, Mar 26 (PTI) As many as 637 projects, including those under the Bharatmala Pariyojana Scheme, have faced delays primarily due to factors like land acquisition issues and financial difficulties faced by contractors, Parliament was informed Wednesday.

Besides force majeure events, scarcity of construction materials, etc have also caused delays in the projects, Union Minister for Road, Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said in a reply to Rajya Sabha.

"The implementation of 637 projects, including those under the Bharatmala Pariyojana Scheme, has faced delays...," the Minister said.

To overcome these challenges and expedite project execution, the government has undertaken various initiatives, Gadkari said..

These include streamlining and expediting land acquisition process, revamping Parivesh Portal to facilitate faster forest and environmental clearances, enabling online approval of General Arrangement Drawing (GAD) of Road Over Bridge/Road Under Bridge (ROB/RUB) from the Railways, and conducting review meetings at various levels with all stakeholders, including state governments, he said.

On the financial implication, Gadkari said it does not arise in every delayed project. The minister said if delay is not attributable to the contractor, price escalation is paid as per contract conditions, which may or may not result in additional cost, depending upon final value of price escalation determined on actual completion of the project.

Further, if delay is attributable to the contractor, damages are imposed, and there is no additional cost due to delay. The government is taking all necessary steps for timely completion of such delayed projects, he said.