Bharat Highways Invit has priced the IPO in the range of INR 98-100 per unit with the issue opening on February 28. The infra-investment trust is offering units worth INR 2,500 crore through the IPO. About 75% of the issue will be available for allocation on a proportionate basis to institutional investors, and 25% will be available for non-institutional investors.
Road And Infrastructure: According to official data, the country has been annually constructing over 10,000 kilometres of national highways (NH) since the launch of Bharatmala in October 2017. The goal of the scheme was to build 74,942 kilometres (km) of NH, of which 34,800 km was approved as the first phase for development (till September 2022) against INR 5.35 lakh crore investment.
Building Highways: As per the ministry s assessment, about 170 million tonnes of waste is accumulated at 2,304 dump sites in the country. The inert material available from these sites can be potentially utilised in the construction of embankments for NHs and state roads, the ministry said in an office memorandum, adding that the government has now decided to dovetail highways construction with Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has successfully auctioned two completed highway stretches for a total of INR 6,584 cr under its monetisation programme. The first project, the 84-km Allahabad Bypass in Uttar Pradesh, was awarded to Cube Highways for INR 2,156 cr, while the Lalitpur–Sagar-Lakhnadon (316 km) project in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh was awarded to IRB Infra Trust for INR 4,428 cr. The private players will be responsible for maintaining and operating the highways for a period of 20 years, during which they will collect user fees.