PM to head Cabinet Committee on Investment, reforms agenda to get a major push

New Delhi: The government on Thursday set up a Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) to accord approval to mega projects worth over Rs 1,000 crore, remove investment bottlenecks and drive growth. The panel will be headed by the Prime Minister and seek to "fast-track mega projects of over Rs 1,000 crore", official sources said after a meeting of the Cabinet.

There are over 100 projects, each involving investment of Rs 1,000 crore or more, which are held up because of some reason or the other. The high-powered panel for according speedy clearance to infrastructure projects was initially mooted by Finance Minister P Chidambaram. He had suggested that the body be called National Investment Board (NIB).

The Cabinet, however, renamed the proposed body as Cabinet Committee on Investment. The panel will have ministers in charge of infrastructure sectors as its members. "All the concerns of the Environment Ministry have been addressed," the source said, adding that the committee would fast track and coordinate mega projects and would not function as an appellate body.

Talking to the reporters, I&B Minister Manish Tewari said: "The Cabinet Committee on Investment has been mandated and tasked with the responsibility of projects of investment over Rs 1,000 crore and ensure expeditious approval if timelines are not adhered to.

"If there are difficulties in big projects in sticking to deadlines, CCI will look into them. And efforts will be made to expedite them."

Welcoming the decision to set up high-powered panel, FICCI President RV Kanoria said: "We have always supported this idea. This will also give a strong signal to the investors that the government wishes to expedite projects." Fast-track clearances to speed up projects are necessary to create jobs by promoting investments which have declined impacting industrial output and economic growth.

With additional information from PTI

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