Response from investors is expected to be lukewarm
NHAI invited bids for the fourth TOT contract in October 2019 and expected to raise over Rs 4,000 crore by offering a total of 7 road stretches, with a cumulative length of 400 km
Toll collection has restarted since, but there is unlikely to be a V-shaped revival in traffic after the lockdown ends - probably - on May 17. There will only be a gradual return to normalcy
Transporters had anticipated around 25% traffic back on the roads from April 20. However, due to various supply chain disruptions the traffic was around 10-15%.
NHAI targets to build 4,500-km highways in current fiscal year
Experts believe it will take about three to four months for the constructions to normalise and the fresh bidding of contracts is some time away.
Constructed by Sher Shah Suri in the 16th century, the original road over the years extended right up to Kabul in Afghanistan (in the west) and Chittagong in Bangladesh (in the east).
NHAI had suspended toll collection on all national highways after the 21-day nationwide lockdown was announced on March 24 to ease emergency services in view of the coronavirus outbreak
Not all companies to gain. while those in hotspots will remain shut, industry feels relaxation applies only to open-air work, not underground or tunnelling operations
The government will give thrust to the use of technology for speeding up project awards, so that the impact of time lapsed due to the coronavirus disease crisis can be minimised
As work came to a halt, mobilised equipment remain stranded with idling costs rising
However, the authority stopped short of meeting its target of 4500 km for the current fiscal, which effectively translates into 12.32 km per day as against the accomplishment of 10.9 km per day.
India Ratings and Research says the lockdowns would hit infrastructure construction and revenue growth of the implementing companies
Shares of Ashoka Buildcon were trading at Rs 54.65 apiece on the BSE, up 3.21% over the previous close.
Shares of the company were trading at Rs 248.20 a piece on BSE in the morning trade
The report labels mobility restriction for countries in three categories - moderate, intermediate and severe
But there have been some delays due to land acquisition and other issues
Bharatmala Pariyojana is a government-sponsored and funded road and highways project
A date-wise action plan would be put in place in order to make the first such offering operational by May this year, a senior NHAI official told Business Standard
NHAI order book muted for next fiscal year due to land acquisition delay