Mumbai, Aug. 31 -- The government monthly report for July 2026 found that infrastructure projects with a cost of Rs 1,500 million (mn) and above recorded a cumulative cost overrun of Rs 3.41 trillion (tn). The report said the total revised cost of the 1,775 monitored projects stood at Rs 37.11 tn against an original estimate of Rs 33.70 tn.

Cumulative expenditure on the projects was Rs 19.26 tn, representing approximately 51.91 per cent of the revised project cost, which the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation described as steady progress in implementation. A significant share of projects are at advanced stages, with 675 projects, or 38 per cent, showing more than 80 per cent physical progress. Three hundred and five projects, or 17 per cent, have crossed 80 per cent financial completion.

The exercises showed a balanced pipeline with projects clustered at initial and advanced stages, indicating new starts alongside projects nearing completion. Physical progress exceeds financial progress in the 81-100 per cent range, while financial progress is relatively higher in the early stages due to upfront expenditures. This pattern reflects standard implementation and disbursement cycles.

Sectoral distribution highlights Transport and Logistics as dominant, accounting for Rs 19.81 tn or 53 per cent of the total revised cost across 1,246 projects, or 70 per cent of the monitored portfolio. The Energy sector accounted for Rs 10.66 tn across 205 projects, while communication infrastructure comprised Rs 1.34 tn across 31 projects. Water and sanitation projects represented Rs 2.05 tn across 53 projects.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways implemented the largest number of projects, 993, with a share of Rs 9.62 tn of the revised cost, followed by the Ministry of Railways with 190 projects valued at Rs 6.38 tn. The report noted 735 mega projects with an original cost of Rs 28.77 tn and 1,040 major projects amounting to Rs 4.93 tn, underscoring the scale and diversity of the national pipeline. The remainder of projects were spread across ministries such as coal, petroleum, power, housing and urban affairs, and others.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Construction World.