The sands are shifting – quite literally – as I pen this, with the US and Israel exchanging firepower with Iran. Iran has retaliated, striking the UAE, Bahrain and Qatar in its attempt to target US army bases. Such crises expose vulnerabilities at an accelerated pace. Even the UAE’s otherwise secure position appears dented. Whether real estate in the UAE will take a hit as non-residents reconsider their choices remains to be seen. But Indian real-estate investments flowing outward to the UAE are certain to be impacted. In this context, the importance of the domestic market comes as a sobering relief. The wars unfolding around us may keep our nosy neighbours occupied but the Government must return to the reform drawing board and pick up the pace from where it left off. With the international community now largely unanimous about India’s relatively attractive investment proposition, it is time to turn up the heat on the bureaucracy that lays out red tape instead of the red carpet. India is set to participate in the World Bank’s Business Ready (B-READY) report in 2026. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has launched several initiatives, including the Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP), under the broader umbrella of Ease of Doing Business. These efforts focus on streamlining regulations, reducing compliance burdens and implementing digital solutions to improve India’s business environment. Key reforms include establishing single-window systems, simplifying building permissions, enhancing inspection procedures and digitising various business processes. The seventh edition, BRAP 2024, is currently in progress, with over 9,700 reforms carried out across states and Union Territories, culminating in state/UT rankings on Ease of Doing Business. One of the world’s longest-running construction projects, the Sagrada Família – a 566-ft-tall basilica – has finally been completed after 144 years. Construction began in 1882, drawing on a blend of modern and Gothic themes conceived by the renowned 19th-century architect Antoni Gaudí. By the time Gaudí died in 1926 – 100 years ago – less than 25 per cent of the church had been completed. While the construction of forts and palaces in earlier centuries took decades, even centuries, without the benefit of mechanisation, their building materials and engineering techniques appear superior in hindsight. These historical monuments have withstood severe weather, wars and attacks, while today’s glass-and aluminium- clad towers seem vulnerable even to slightly above-normal weather conditions. Road quality has also been a cause for concern, a point openly voiced by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, who has admonished consultants responsible for preparing Detailed Project Reports (DPRs). While the DPR prepared pre-tender becomes the defining contractual document for contractors, engineers on the ground often find themselves constrained. Once a project is awarded and physical access to the site is secured, proposing a technically superior or more cost-effective solution – whether a better pavement design or a more appropriate bridge foundation – becomes nearly impossible. Any deviation from the authority-issued DPR is frowned upon. If innovation is to address this legacy issue, the responsibility for DPR preparation could be shifted to the selected contractor, with tender documents clearly stating that any pre-tender DPR provided is for “informational purposes only” and not binding. This would allow onsite engineers to craft more contextually appropriate designs, with execution backed by rigorous third-party evaluation to determine whether the revised solution indeed offers an improvement over the original DPR. A recent visit to Jaisalmer offered me some of the best road surfaces I have ever driven on. Perhaps it is the presence of the Army – which cannot afford to have its movements hindered by poor road quality – but it reinforces a simple truth: Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Do find your way to the Infrastructure Today AIRPORTS Conclave on 12 March in Mumbai, and don’t miss the opportunity to meet international importers at our Bharat Buildcon conference on 29 April in Delhi.