Highway Ministry reaches 20% of April 2024 capital expenditure target

17 May 2024 CW Team

Despite experiencing a slowdown in awarding projects during the second half of 2023, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (Morth) continued to prioritize front-loading capital expenditure, spending over Rs 545 billion on new highway construction in April this year.

In its monthly report to the Union Cabinet, the ministry reported that it had achieved 20.04 percent of its capital expenditure target with 11 months remaining.

The ministry has been proactive in early execution of capital expenditure, following a strategy set by the finance ministry to ensure infrastructure creation does not face excessive backlogs towards the end of the financial year.

Typically, ministries are expected to ensure that at least two-thirds of their capital expenditure is spent by the end of the second quarter. Although the highway ministry has consistently maintained double-digit percentage shares in capital expenditure in previous years, this is the first time it has begun a financial year having spent over Rs 500 billion.

Experts note that there is still a healthy pipeline of projects from the NHAI, and the impacts of the Bharatmala slowdown are expected to be more pronounced in FY26.

Additionally, the ministry had anticipated a decline in construction (and consequently capital expenditure) starting FY25 due to delays in the approval of the Revised Estimates of the Bharatmala project, which had seen a Rs 5 trillion increase in costs.

In November 2023, the ministry informed the cabinet that the shortfall in awards for the current year would affect construction progress in FY 2024-25.

Infrastructure Urban

07 Nov 2025

Welspun Enterprises Wins 910 MLD Panjrapur WTP Contract

Welspun Enterprises (WEL), the infrastructure and energy arm of Welspun World, has secured a major contract from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to design, build and operate a 910 million litres per day (MLD) Water Treatment Plant (WTP) at Panjrapur, Maharashtra.Valued at approximately Rs 31.45 billion, the project encompasses end-to-end civil, mechanical, electrical and instrumentation works, including the construction of a treated water sump and pumping station. Of the total value, nearly Rs 11.56 billion is allocated to Operations & Maintenance (O&M), with an additional..

Mitsubishi Power Wins Boiler Upgrade Contract for O Mon 1 Plant

Mitsubishi Power, a power solutions brand of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, (MHI), has been awarded a contract to support the oil-to-natural-gas fuel conversion at the O Mon 1 Thermal Power Plant in Can Tho, southern Vietnam. As the OEM of the plant’s existing boiler, Mitsubishi Power will supply key equipment—including new gas burners—and implement a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system to reduce NOx emissions and help the plant meet stricter environmental standards.The O Mon 1 facility includes two 330 MW units that commenced operations in 2009 and 2015, with all major equipment or..

Liebherr’s 10,000th XPower Wheel Loader Joins BERGER’s Fleet

BERGER Rohstoffe GmbH has welcomed the 10,000th Liebherr XPower wheel loader to its operations at the Schlag granite quarry in Passau. The milestone machine, officially handed over at Liebherr’s Bischofshofen plant in May 2025, underscores the long-standing partnership between BERGER, Liebherr, and the Beutlhauser Group. Equipped with Liebherr’s signature power-split travel drive, the new L 580 XPower is already delivering strong results under demanding quarry conditions.At the Schlag quarry, BERGER Rohstoffe processes approximately 200,000 tonnes of Bayerwald granite annually into high-qu..