1) The document summarizes discussions from an international conference on infrastructure management in India. Several speakers addressed challenges facing infrastructure projects in India such as cost and time overruns, lack of regulatory coordination, and uneven regional development. 2) One speaker noted that 41% of Indian infrastructure projects suffered cost overruns while 82% faced time overruns, highlighting poor project implementation. Another discussed the infrastructure deficit between hilly and plain regions in Uttarakhand state. 3) Issues discussed included the need for private investment in infrastructure, challenges in project financing, importance of environmental regulations, and developing a skilled workforce to support continued infrastructure growth. The conference featured over 100 papers on topics like energy, transportation, and resource

1. Dehradun: Most of the projects in India suffer poor implementation in the form of multiple
overruns, said Former Chief Secretary of Uttarakhand, Dr. Ramachandran in an International
Conference on Management of Infrastructure that concluded at College of Management and
Economic Studies (CMES), University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES) recently.
In a special plenary address, he said that role of private participation in the infrastructure
sector has been recognized in consecutive five-year plans and now the contribution of private
sector has grown to $542 billion. Enumerating the critical issues and problems creating hurdles,
he said that lack of national approval board; delay in clearance of the projects; poor estimation of
inflation; land acquisition policy and poor project management are adding to the woes of the
sector. Expressing serious concern over the poor implementation trend in India, he gave an
account of 1035 infrastructure projects, out of which 41% suffered cost over-run while 82%
faced time over-run.
Indu K Pandey, Former Chief Secretary of Uttarakhand, spoke on “Uttarakhand: A
Development Scenario”. He dwelt at length over the transition of state’s focus from agriculture
to industry, the various development indicators and the intra-state disparity vis-à-vis
infrastructure. He also illustrated the regional imbalance of infrastructure in the state, with a
deficit of development in the hilly regions of the state. “Per Capita income of hill districts
is Rs. 27900 in comparison of Rs. 42200 for plain districts” he noted. Mr. Pandey also threw
light on development and social dimensions of development. He illustrated how poverty and lack
of infrastructure lead to a vicious cycle, and explained the various development issues involved
(economic, environmental and socio-cultural issues). He noted the need for inclusivity, social
capital, and sustainable human development. Drawing upon his considerable experience, he
illustrated 12 strategy challenges during the twelfth five-year plan period: enhanced capacity;
enhancing skills and faster generation of employment; managing environment sustainability;
markets for efficiency and inclusion; decentralization empowerment and inclusion; technology
and innovation; securing the energy future of India; accelerated development of transport
infrastructure; rural transformation and sustained growth of agriculture; managing urbanization;
improved access to quality education and better preventive and curative health care. By
illustrating a SWOT analysis of the infrastructure climate in the state, he gave the audience a
holistic view of the sector in Uttarakhand.
Dr. Hemant Trivedi, Director, School of Petroleum Management, Pandit Deendayal
Petroleum University, spoke on “Current scenario and future of energy sector”. He started his
presentation with a detailed explanation of the current energy scenario. He talked in length about
the shift in symptoms of an unsustainable energy system, and oil prices – which are at an all time
high- acting as a brake on the world economy. He talked in length about the various sources of
energy and its production/consumption by region. While talking about the future of the energy
sector, he noted that emerging economies steer the energy markets. “Global energy demand
would rise by one-third in the period to 2035, underpinned by rising living standards in China,
India and the Middle East. He talked about the emergence of a new silk road in the export
Middle East oil to Asia. He illustrated the multiple benefits of renewable energy – which come at
a cost- and evolved a blueprint for an efficient world. “Economically viable efficiency measures
can halve energy demand growth to 2035; oil demand savings equal the current production of
Russia and Norway”, he noted.
Dr. K.V. Damodharan, spoke on “Telecom and Regulatory (Role of Regulator in
Infrastructure Development)”. Dr. Damodharan illustrated the importance of infrastructure
development and noted that “inadequacy of infrastructure was one of the main reasons for

2. India’s slow economic growth” and the “limited expertise in government to modernize, develop
and operate infrastructure projects in a timely and cost effective manner”. He talked about the
emergence of the Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) model and the emergence of a regulator in
many sectors. He also noted that infrastructure development in the country is expected to have a
much larger role for private investments and the presence of a regulator to ensure a level playing
field. “Establishing credibility is the ability of the regulatory system to safeguard the interests of
consumers”, he added.
In the telecom sector, Dr. Damodharan noted the transition from the public sector to the
private sector and illustrated the history of the regulatory framework in the sector. He talked in
detail of the death of distance: “In the 90’s the call rates were according to the distance whereas
in today’s scenario, distance is no longer a parameter to decide the call rate. Now, the call rates
are same for different distances”.
Mr. Sanjeev Singhal, SBI Project Finance Division, while talking about the contemporary
issues and the way forward in infrastructure financing and the role of PPP, expressed regret over
the poor ranking of India on global competitiveness in terms of infrastructure, with India
ranking 84th out of a total of 144 countries. He talked about the models in the emerging markets
of Brazil, China, Chile and South Korea, and revealed that the financial institutions backed by
the government in these countries are working as backbone for the development of the
infrastructure sector.
In the twelfth five-year plan period, he revealed that the projected investment is split
evenly between debt and equity, but raising these funds is going to be a challenge. He noted that
there is a danger that the sources identified many also not be able to contribute the projected
investment and that the gap is likely to widen. “Other sources and forms of funding will need to
be tapped/ developed to fill up the gap”, he added. He also explained the PPP model in India,
risk allocation and key concerns of project structuring; intense competition; contractual
enforcement; macro issues; financing and regulatory issues.
Mr. Ashok Emani, IDFC exhibited the gamut of Environment, Health and Safety (EHS)
in India and said that constitutional provisions advocate the protection of environment, human
life and the tribal culture. Earlier on day one of the conference,
Mr. Cherian Thomas, CEO, IDFC Foundation, speaking as Chief Guest said that Private
investment and Public Private Partnership (PPP) has moved from the tentative option to
preferred option for financing infrastructure projects in the country.He was speaking as Chief
Guest of inaugural ceremony of International Conference on Management of Infrastructure that
began at College of Management and Economics, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies
today. Delivering a thought provoking address which showcased the achievements and
challenges of the infrastructure sector, Mr. Thomas also dwelled on a short history of private
sector involvement in the infrastructure space: during the tenth five-year plan, private sector
investment was 20% of the investment in the infrastructure sector. During the eleventh five-year
plan, of a total investment of $500 billion, 30% was targeted from the private sector; however,
the achieved target was over 37%. Mr. Thomas while citing examples from his experience
added that while developing a project, the needs of users should be kept in mind over
philosophical or ideological consideration. He added that PPP must be undertaken only if
effectiveness, including cost effectiveness, can be achieved. Mr. Thomas also enumerated the
various problems facing PPP projects in the country, by mentioning examples like the Delhi
Metro project where the project has been developed before the infrastructure framework for the
project could be addressed. He also lauded National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) and

3. Karnataka for effecting the reduction of losses by effective implementation. Expressing his
concern on a number of overzealous developers bidding for projects with overtly enthusiastic
terms with a view on achieving a notable presence in the sector, he suggested a framework where
the number of bidders for a project is limited, with qualifications on financial strength and
technical ability. Expressing his views on government policy, he mentioned the desirability of an
enabling framework rather than a prescriptive framework.
Drawing his considerable experience in the infrastructure sector, Mr. Thomas mentioned
certain pre-requisites for successful creation of infrastructure projects. These are: - stable policy
and regulatory framework; long term strategy for sector; rigour in the way projects and programs
are developed; risk framework, with risk passed on to those parties which are capable of
handling them; should be able to stand test and scrutiny to transparent and individual evaluation;
reliable sources of revenue; bringing in long term sources of finance and training programs to
sensitize stakeholders to the realities of the infrastructure sector.
Addressing the delegates, Chancellor of UPES, Dr. S.J. Chopra stressed upon the need
for equitable contractual framework in the infrastructure sector while Vice- Chancellor Dr. Parag
Diwan while throwing light on the chronology of the development of the University quoted
”UPES has always been ahead of the curve with its core sector education initiative .Starting with
oil and gas sector in 2003 the university has moved ahead with departments like power,
aviation, logistics, infrastructure etc.” . Mr. Diwan also mentioned about the consultancy
initiatives being extended by the university to organizations like Bharat Petroleum and projects
like the “ Golden quadrilateral “ and hydro power projects in Arunachal Pradesh.
Pro Vice-Chancellor Mr. Utpal Ghosh asked the delegates and researches to deliberate upon the
difference in infrastructural efficacy existing between the developed and developing countries.
He exhorted the organizers to develop a set of recommendations on the basis of the findings,
views and researchers being discussed in the two day conference.
Dr. Anirban Sengupta, Dean, College of Economic and Management Studies (CMES),
University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES), delivered the welcome address of ICMI2013. In his address, he noted that it has been ten years since CMES UPES started its journey of
delivering energy and domain-specific management education. In this time, it has successfully
launched nine domain-specific MBA programs, 4 domain-specific BBA programs and has been
painstakingly working towards building up its PhD program as one of the most respected
domain-specific PhD program in the area of infrastructure and core sector. “UPES as a university
has now moved beyond from energy and has repositioned itself as the nation-builder’s
university” added Dr. Sengupta. He added, “In line with the same, CMES UPES will now aspire
to evolve as a leading B School in the infrastructure and core sector space.”
Having consolidated its under-graduate, graduate and PhD programs- CMES UPES has
now launched itself into the next stage of institution building- that is- evolving as a thought
leader in its area of expertise and create platforms for the various stakeholders. Dr. Sengupta
held out the hope that ICMI as a concept would emerge as the most sought after business schooldriven annual conference in the infrastructure and core sector space. With 105 papers being
presented over the two days (92 during the technical sessions and 13 in the invited paper
category), ICMI 2013 is a platform for academicians, practitioners, policy-makers and regulators
to showcase cutting-edge research as well as exchange new thoughts and ideas for development
and management of infrastructure.
On the first day, the first presentation was delivered by Dr. Reshmy Nair, Administrative
Staff College of India on “Land acquisition and resettlement” and discussed the macroeconomic

4. and contemporary issues regarding land acquisition. The second presentation was delivered by
Dr. Binay Anand, Shell USA on the topic “Shale Gas Discovery: opportunities and challenges”.
Dr. Anand informed the audience about the immense potential of shale gas as an alternative
source of energy. Ashwani Khanna, DIAL spoke on “Airport Infrastructure Management and
Challenges”. He showcased the importance of the aviation sector and made suggestions for the
growth of the industry. Dr. Ugur Goven, Professor of Nuclear Energy at UPES, expressed his
views on “Role and Essentials of Nuclear Energy in our future”. He illustrated the importance of
energy and the suitability of nuclear energy to face challenges posed by climate change.
The Convener Dr. K.K. Pandey & Co-Conveners Dr. Tarun Dhingra & Dr. Neeraj Anand, of the
conference informed that as many as 105 papers were presented by different scholars, experts
and students from across the country. They said that these research papers were evaluated by the
panel of experts and chairpersons.
Best Papers for the different tracks are given below;
Tracks
Number of
Best papers
Energy
2
Transportation
1
Resource & Facilities
Soft Infrastructure
1
1
Best paper Authors Name
a)
Ms. Neha M. Sehgal & Dr. K.K. Pandey
b) Mr. Gursharan Singh & Dr. Tarun Dhingra
Dr. Sumit Gupta, Dr. T. Joji Rao along & Mr.
Sachin
Mr. Sikher deep and Ms. Akansha Saklani
Dr. Shashi K. Tiwari,
In the student category, Mr. Abhishek Pundir, Mr. Vaibhav and Ms. Yogiata Sharma were adjudged
as first, second and third respectively. On the behalf of CMES, Convener’s team announced that this
conference as an annual event. Team added that the findings of the conference would be compiled,
published and furnished to the concerned Ministries.
Here are some pictures,