ÑDz©ÌåÓý¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³

The Maharashtra Government has decided to construct the Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg through Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) model. This will ensure that the project is completed in time. The state government has set deadline of October 2019 for its ambitious project. EPC is the popular model being adopted globally in many projects like road construction as the government bears the entire financial burden thereby decreasing the risk and increasing the incentives for private partners.   Problems with PPP Majority of developers in the infrastructure sector face varied problems pertaining to land acquisition, clearances, funds availability while constructing a road or a highway. These issues cause delay in implementation of the project under private public partnership (PPP) model. To resolve these issues and ensure speedy completion of the Mahamarg, the state government has taken the step to construct the Mahamarg, also known as Nagpur Mumbai Super Communication Expressway (NMSCE), through EPC model.   EPC, the best alternative In EPC model, the responsibility of procuring the land remains with the government. It also ensures that all the necessary clearances are received before handing over the project to the private player. In EPC model, the share of the government is pre-decided and it pays a fixed amount in installments to the private entity within a stipulated time. This ensures that the private player has funds using which he can carry out the project. The private firm also carries out the process of designing and procurement needed for the project. Thus, the EPC model is less complicated and safeguards the private player from risks.   EPC vs PPP In PPP model, the private developers have to work in tandem with government organisations, but seldom face delay in land acquisition by the government agencies, getting environmental, and forest clearances. Many times, they also struggle to raise funds since under the PPP model, the capital, partly or completely, has to be raised by private player by either borrowing from banks or issuing private equity funds. Such problems are resolved through EPC model. Not only the EPC model will help the project to be completed in time, but will also ensure that the private partners do away with the concern of paying bank loan, as they will not need to raise funds in EPC model.   Mahamarg of prosperity The Mahamarg will catapult the State’s growth by 20 years through a holistic process that integrates road connectivity with sustainable rural development through agribusiness ecosystems and multidimensional sub-projects. The 700-km Expressway will connect 10 districts, 24 talukas and 391 villages of Maharashtra. This process in turn will generate employment, fuel growth in agriculture and related activities, lay the foundations of a robust infrastructure, and eventually contain rural migration. NMSCE will offer faster and better connectivity, create a positive socio economic impact, reduction in travel time and faster development of the under-developed regions through this multi-pronged approach.