Presenting the Union Budget 2022, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that PM Gati Shakti was sparked by the seven engines of roads, railways, airports, ports, mass transport, waterways and logistics. This will help advance the economy, Sitharaman said. "PM Gati Shakti Master Plan for Expressways will come to being in 2022-23, and this will help in quicker transportation. The National Highway network will be expanded by 25,000km in 2022-23, and Rs 20,000 crore will spent."
Sitharaman announced that a panel will be set up for urban planning, and
80 lakh affordable houses will be completed at ₹44,000 cr under PM Awas Yojna in 2022-23. "We will introduce a shift to the use of public transport in urban areas, incentivising it with special mobility zones with zero fossil fuel policy, and a Battery Swapping Policy given space constraints," Sitharaman said.
The Economic Survey had noted that the challenge is to step up infrastructure investment substantially. During financial years 2008-2017, India invested $1.1 trillion on infrastructure. But, now it will have to spend $1.4 trillion if it is to achieve the GDP of $5 trillion by 2024-25, it said.
Roads, railways and defence will continue to be the thrust areas where government spending will remain high, say economists. Healthcare infrastructure spending is also expected to get a further boost, on the back of the pandemic.
