The capital expenditure (capex) only by the road and railway ministries in creating infrastructures has crossed Rs 2 lakh crore in the first four months (till July) of the current financial year. This is the highest ever utilisation of the capex by the two ministries. Nearly half of the Rs 10 lakh crore capex has been allocated to these two ministries.
The government has set the target to spend 80% of the total capex by December, much ahead of the next general elections.
Sources in the railway ministry said the national transporter has spent more than 40% capex utilisation till July. They added that more than Rs lakh 1 crore has been spent by railways in ongoing infrastructure and safety projects. In the Budget 2023-24, the maximum ever capex of Rs 2.6 lakh crore was allocated to railways.
“This whopping investment is seen in various infrastructure projects such as new lines, doubling, gauge conversion and enhancing passenger amenities. A significant sum has been invested in enhancing the safety related works,” an official said.
The official said this capex utilisation this year is 31.3% more than the corresponding period last year.
Road ministry officials said the total capital expenditure in the road sector has been around Rs 1.2 lakh crore against the total allocation of Rs 2.59 lakh crore for the entire financial year.