Development Watch – Week #2 April ’24

Development News

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Rs. 11 Lakh Crore investment for trains on the anvil

Indian Railways is gearing up for transformative 100-day plan after Lok Sabha elections. It will be focused on passenger-friendly measures. The plan also includes 24-hour ticket refund scheme. Along with a comprehensive “super-app” for passengers, and launch of the final stretch of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramula rail link project. Sleeper versions of Vande Bharat trains are also in the works. Introduction of India’s first vertical lift railway bridge is on the cards, along with expediting the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project.

Kolkata Port profits increases 65%

The 154-years old Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port (Kolkata Port) has recorded Rs. 501 Cr profit in FY-24. This is a 65% jump compared to the previous year. The port’s net surplus in 2022-23 was Rs. 304 Crores. The port handled an all-time high of 67 million tonnes of cargo in 2023-24. The port’s growth is attributed to enhance safety measures, productivity, business development and capacity utilization. The Haldia Dock Complex also played a significant role as it handles 49.5 million tonnes of cargo.

Rural Jobs and impact of Heat Waves

The projected demand under rural jobs scheme was found to be 27% lower in FY’25. The Rural development ministry has pegged the 2024-25 person-day generation target (known as labour budget) at 2.21 billions under MGNREGS. This is 27% lower from the actual level in last fiscal. However, the government is also prepared for any increase in work demand. This target is based on projections by Panchayats, assessed by relevant district and state authorities. It follows a bottom-up approach. In the coming months, increasing heat waves may also impact daily life, business and economy. Power demand may also rise, causing pressure on power generation, leading to power cuts. Heat waves can also disrupt food production, prices and rural demand.

HUDCO to raise funds from Singapore and Taiwan

HUDCO is looking to tap East Asian countries like Singapore and Taiwan to raise funds in FY 24. Japan was the maiden attempt to raise funds via external commercial borrowing. This has been received very well. There is good arbitrage for getting funds at 80-100 bps lesser than domestic funds. HUDCO was planning to raise $100 million from Japan, but is confident of landing nearly double that amount. The compmany may even tap US markets after the Fed initiates rate cuts.

Rs. 240 Crores investment to upgrade Pune aerospace facility

GE Aerospace announced its plans to invest Rs. 240 Crores ($30 million) to upgrade its manufacturing facility in Pune. The investment will be used to add new projects and manufacturing processes in the facility by acquiring machines/equipment and specialized tools along with capacity enhancement of existing products.

Maharashtra RERA approved registrations of 4,332 projects

Maharashtra RERA has granted registration to over 4300 new real estate projects out of 5,471 applications received during FY 2023-24. Pune had highest number of registrations with 1172 projects, followed by Thane with 597. Nagpur has 336 while Nashik has 310 projects going on. Mumbai Metropolitan Region comprising Mumbai, Mumbai Suburban, Thane, Raigad are also known as the Konkan region.

ReNEW power has attained 10 GW capacity

ReNEW power has completed 1.94 GW of renewable assets in FY ’24. Total capacity now stands at 10 GW. The clean energy company operates in 10 Indian states with 150 renewable energy sites, and aims to be carbon neutral by 2040. The company added 1,174 MW of solar and 768 MW of wind energy during FY ’24.

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