Government paralysis, bureaucratic stonewalling of projects and corruption. Indian infrastructure firms on Sunday vented their frustration during a World Economic Forum event in Mumbai at what they saw as needless brakes on growth in a sector key to the country's prosperity.
Asia's third-largest economy plans spending $1 trillion over the next five years to expand its clogged roads, tackle huge power shortages and overhaul its creaking railways.
Lacking the financial muscle that China has to bring its infrastructure up to speed, the Indian government has turned to the private sector to fund half of that target. "The government has, by necessity, given lots of space to the private sector," said Rajiv Lall, chief executive officer of Infrastructure and Development Finance Co.
"But having unleashed this genie, it has struggled to keep pace with it ... enthusiasm and skills of private developers far outpace the government's ability to provide support."
However, India's ambitions have been crimped by corruption scandals that have sparked huge protests against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government and slowed decision-making on big projects.
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