Infra plan will boost investor confidence, but needs hand-holding: Experts

The proposed Rs 102-trillion infrastructure investment announcement by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman would boost investor confidence, say sector experts and officials.

The plan, however, will need initial hand-holding by the Centre, through higher spending, they add. The FM has said she expected Centre and states to have equal share of the proposed capital expenditure, at 39 per cent, followed by the private sector at 22 per cent.

“Identifying projects’ pipeline is a great initiative, to help focus on progress and provide visibility to investors. Sectors like irrigation and railways will likely continue to depend largely on government spending. In the current context, I would expect the same for roads, until bank financing eases,” said Manish Agrawal, partner at consultants PWC India. He expects airports and digital infrastructure to attract private investment.