Infrastructure Issues in India - Term Paper Example

This paper attempts to evaluate existing infrastructural issues in India and how they affect the country’s overall economic prospects. India’s poor infrastructure is a huge obstacle towards the country’s overall economic growth prospects. In essence, India is among the fastest growing economies in Asia and the world in general though its huge growth projects have been hindered by the extremely poor infrastructure found in the subcontinent. The paper further examines the relevant frailties in India’s infrastructure evaluating the available options for improvement and better performance.

To underscore the infrastructural issues of India and its needs, the paper will conduct a comparative analysis between India and China as regards infrastructure. Conceivably Indian infrastructural planning has been below the standards resulting into substandard infrastructures. Economic growth requires adequate and quality infrastructure, which serves as a huge aid towards development and economic activity. Poor infrastructure, on the other hand, hinders basic economic activities and dilutes government’s attention on crucial economic matters.

For better economic performance, it is essential to have an infrastructure that can support the economy and its business activities. Therefore, it is of great importance that India elevates its infrastructure to an advanced level that can support its economic and growth perspectives. In essence, India needs to consider the investment in power, energy, healthcare, water/waste management and address policies supporting the development of infrastructure. Such an approach will go along way in boosting the country’s infrastructural levels providing it with the necessary impetus to pursue its ambitious economic endeavors.

Statistically, more than half of India’s shipment and 80 percent of traveler traffic moves on the freeway network, which largely comprises two-lane roads. The country has 700 kilometers of thruways, mostly reserved for cars, buses and trucks. Most of the expressways with four lanes run through Ahmedabad and Vadodara as well as between Pune and Mumbai. China, on the other hand, has 74,000 kilometers of superhighways up from 147 kilometers in 1989 (Huang 3). Therefore, is far much behind China in the road network and though India’s has ambitious infrastructural projects it will take a long time for the subcontinent to catch up with China.

In August 2009, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh developed a goal of constructing 20 kilometers of new highways a day as a fraction of efforts to advance infrastructure graded below Kazakhstan’s and Guatemala’s, according to the World Economic Forum. The daily standard was 4.5 kilometers in 2011, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. India endeavors to expend as much as $1 trillion in five years on power plants, roads, and ports (Sundaram 1). India may use $5.3 billion tripling the span of its expressway network to reduce traffic jams that are slowing commerce, wasting fuel, in addition to sapping economic growth.

The country proposes to add approximately 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) of highways with at least six lanes. In an interview, Raghav Chandra -who is the joint secretary at the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways- confirmed that India has great plans to refurbish its road network so as to create an enabling environment for trade and overall economic