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India's aviation sector will require an estimated $7 billion in investments over the next 10 years, aircraft manufacturer and transportation giant Bombardier has said.
The company, in a report, said the government should gradually reduce its control over the aviation sector and create investment opportunities in the infrastructure sector as a whole if India was to achieve the projected 8 per cent growth rate in the Tenth Plan period.
The report, prepared by Robert Greenhill, president and COO, Bombardier International, has been titled 'India Transportation Infrastructure Blueprint'.
The report found that roads and ports have been the biggest beneficiary of policy reforms. In contrast, aviation is the least developed sector, preceded by the railway and urban transport sectors.
"Transport growth worldwide has been consistently higher than economic growth. India has set itself an ambitious growth target of 8 per cent in the Tenth Plan period. This will require a 10-12 per cent annual growth in transportation system capacity i.e., an increase of 150-200 per cent in the next seven years. As much of the infrastructure projects have long gestation periods of 5-10 years, policy and investment decisions taken now will determine India's growth a decade from now," the report said.
For India to reach global standards in transportation infrastructure over the next 10 years, the report suggested that the country should enhance capacity of existing infrastructure and make operations more competitive through policy and operational improvements.
It also sought more investments for the creation of better and modern infrastructure.
"A massive requirement for national and international capital will create opportunities for financial institutions, foreign investors and infrastructure players and stimulate various industries: cement, steel, equipment, consultancy, engineering, etc," the report added.
While investments of about $40 billion is required over the next ten years in the roads sector, $20 billion is needed for ports and $15 billion for railways. An estimated $5 billion is required for the development of the urban transport system in the country, Bombardier has found.
The research collated by the company, with contributions from the World Bank, Feedback Ventures, Jet Airways, the National Council of Applied Economic Research, the Boeing Company and the MahaMumbai SEZ, will be used as a discussion paper during the India Economic Summit.
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