28% of the budgetary outlay for infra expended in the first quarter itself, led by roads and railways

Setting a tone for sustained infrastructure growth this fiscal, the central government has front-loaded capital expenditure (capex). It has not only ramped up its outlay, but also picked up the pace of allocation. It has expended 28% of the total budgetary outlay in the first quarter itself, the highest utilisation in percentage terms for the first quarter in the past five fiscals.

The spend has been led by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) and the Ministry of Railways (MoR). Notably, the two ministries had collectively accounted for 41.6% of the government’s total capex over fiscals 2020 to 2022. Over fiscals 2023 and 2024, this figure rose to ~50%. The increase is reflective of a compelling shift in the government’s focus towards the roads and railways sectors.