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26/01/16, 15:57
Indian policymakers had been daydreaming all along that the public-private
partnership (PPP) model could solve all the infrastructural deficiencies of India
a clear case of vision that had turned into wishful thinking. In reality, the
supposedly resounding thrust on PPP has backfired and has even choked the
prospects of this model. It is true that there is promise in the model, which had
raised the hopes of the nation, especially in the areas of mega-infrastructural
development projects. The entire nation had started to envision our metros
becoming the equivalents of Shanghai or New York in the years to come. And
why not? The drumbeats and glitter associated with the PPP model have been
quite profound. If we compare the beaming airports of Delhi or Hyderabad (built
through the PPP model) to the shoddy government achievements showcased in
the quite ordinary looking Chennai and Kolkata airports, the point does gets
proved.
Against Indias poor infrastructural backdrop, PPP had been exponentially scaled
up in the last ten years under a blind faith that it would produce nothing short of a
miracle. Private participation has been consequently rising in PPPs in sync with
governments mission and policy. In the 11th Five Year Plan for example, the
governments estimation of investment on the countrys infrastructure between
2007 and 2012 was pegged at $320 billion. In this context, the World Bank had
earlier assessed that as much as 20 per cent of this could be sourced through PPPs. Astonishingly, the figure rose to 37
per cent with the major contribution coming in the telecom sector.
On hindsight, everything may seem good; but then, a deeper scrutiny reveals how PPP projects are getting stalled and
delayed. What get missed in the larger picture are the latent problems that are getting accumulated beneath the surface.
No doubt, the PPP model has constructed numerous state-of-the-art infrastructure projects, but they are still inferior in
comparison to the output that developed nations have been achieving through the same model. The inherent curse of redtapism and power struggle between different agencies as well as between the private sector and government are looming
threats for the prospects of the Indian PPP model. Add to this, the inevitable scenario of corruption and resultant artificial
price hike of the resources that are gradually making PPP an unviable business model.
For example, in the case of the new Chennai airport, the
tussle between Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the
private consortium on controlling rights has become a case in
point. The impediments faced while inaugurating the new
Chennai airport throw open more questions than answers.
The governments decision to hand over the terminals to
private parties has made the AAI extremely dissatisfied
because they were and are striving for having a complete
control! Further, as mentioned above, the ubiquitous red tape
played its usual role in delaying the project that consequently
failed to meet deadlines not once or twice but over a dozen
times in the last four years. Like I said, this one case study of
the mismanaged show at the Chennai airport more or less is
symbolic of the problems that encompass the entire PPP
domain across the country. And running parallel to this, corruption has no lesser a role to play either. From power
companies to telecom giants, wherever there is involvement of private companies in sync with the government, the unholy
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