Amid the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the ruling BJP is campaigning on its record, emphasising infrastructure development under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership as the Modi government marks ten years in office. Roads, trains, airports, and metro systems are just a few of the infrastructure elements that PM Modi has repeatedly stressed are changing. Even the opposition parties recognise the tremendous progress the Modi administration has made in the nation’s infrastructure sector in the last ten years.
Since taking power, the Modi administration has continuously increased spending on the nation’s infrastructure. The budget for 2024–25 shows a 2000% rise in capital expenditures over 2013–14, despite a 60% increase in the length of national roadways. In addition, the country’s train network has switched from running on diesel to electricity, and new airports have been built to improve air connections and make distant areas more accessible.
During the Modi administration, national highways and infrastructure were renovated by 60%.
Any nation’s roads are its lifelines, enabling advancement and growth. They carry around 60% of the nation’s goods and are essential for the movement of about 87% of the population. There were 91,287 km of national roadways before the Modi administration took office. This length increased to 1.46 lakh km between 2014 and 2024, indicating a noteworthy 60% expansion of the nation’s highway network in the last ten years.
Over the past ten years, 95,000 km of national highways have been built nationwide, according to Anurag Jain, Secretary of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH). This equates to an average daily building of nearly 28.3 km of highways, a significant increase of 143% when compared to the figures from 2014. Furthermore, the money set aside for building national highways has increased by about ten times. The Ministry of Road Transport budget increased to ₹2.78 lakh crore in 2024–25 from roughly ₹25,000 crore in 2014.
Apart from the National Highways, the nation’s motorway system is moving quickly. The entire length of motorways was estimated to be around 1000 kilometres in 2014. As of right now, that number has increased to more than 5500 km, which is an astounding 500% growth. The Delhi-Mumbai Motorway is currently being built; some of its length is already accessible to the general public. There are currently numerous motorway developments underway that should be finished shortly.
Infrastructure Development for Railroads by the Modi Administration
The last ten years have seen significant changes to the railway network and major advancements in the transportation industry. The Modi government has allocated significant sums towards the ongoing modernisation of the Railways. Significant increases in the railway budget have made it possible to launch nationwide trains like Tejas, Vande Bharat, and Gatimaan Express. Interestingly, the electrification of 94% of the network is the most notable accomplishment of the Modi government in the railway sector. The country’s railway network was electrified for only 21,801 kilometres in 2014, when the Modi government took office.
The country’s railway network is currently electrified over 61,000 kilometres. The daily pace of electricity increased to 14 kilometres during the Modi government from 1.42 kilometres under the UPA administration. The Modi administration has set aside Rs 43,346 crore for electrification projects. Furthermore, much progress has been made in constructing new railway lines and electrification; 25,871 km of new lines were created during the Modi government’s mandate.
During the Modi government’s tenure, the railways received substantial funding. The Railways were allotted about ₹29,000 crore in budget for 2014. This budget has increased to ₹2.90 lakh crore by 2024–25, nearly eight times over. The Modi administration is concentrating on station refurbishment projects in addition to investments in new lines and electrification projects. Prime Minister Modi has approved the construction of more than 550 Amrit Bharat stations nationwide.
Airport numbers have risen under the Modi administration.
Significant progress has been made in the aviation industry under the leadership of the Modi government, along with initiatives to reduce rail and road traffic congestion. There were 74 airports in the nation in 2014; that number has now increased to 149. Ayodhya is home to this network’s newest member, which is noteworthy. The Modi administration has given the go-ahead for reconstructing twenty-one airports, many of which are currently in use. Moreover, plans to build a new airport in Jewar, Uttar Pradesh, and another in Mumbai are being made to relieve the strain on Delhi’s airport.
Aviation traffic has increased dramatically due to the Modi government’s UDAN initiative, with over 545 active aviation routes. More than 2.60 lakh flights have been made possible by this programme, benefiting approximately 1.35 crore travellers. The government has allotted more than ₹3300 crore to execute this programme.
Metro network development
To improve intra-city transit, the Modi government has led a major expansion of the metro network in addition to highways, railroads, and aviation. Metro services were only available in a few cities before the Modi administration’s mandate, including Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Gurgaon. However, as of December 2023, 17 cities nationwide are home to metro services. The metro service in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, is the most recent addition to this network. The RRTS corridor connecting Delhi and Meerut will soon be completed to improve further communication in the area.
There are 19 cities in the nation where metro building or expansion projects are currently in progress. This comprises Madhya Pradesh’s Bhopal, Indore, and Patna in Bihar. The central government has set aside about ₹1 lakh crore in funding for these metro projects.
Infrastructure development in the nation necessitates a sizeable financial outlay. Infrastructure spending has consistently increased under the Modi administration’s direction. Specifically, capital expenditure has grown significantly. The nation’s capital expenditures increased from ₹1.9 lakh crore in 2014 to ₹11 lakh crore in 2024–25. This indicates a noteworthy rise of around 500% throughout this time frame.
