In an exclusive interaction with INFRASTRUCTURE TODAY's Pratap Padode and Manish Pant, Kumar outlines the broad strategy that they, as providers of diversified energy-efficiency services, are implementing to radically alter the way energy is consumed in India and globally.

Most of the projects we have awarded are sewage treatment plants in various states. These plants use standard available technology.

The $1billion US-based engineering and construction management company, Louis Berger, has been active in India for over 20 years. The New Jersey-based corporation is engaged in a slewof projects, including bridges, tunnels, roads, highways, railways, and transit, aviation and smart cities.

Kochi Metro is the first Indian metro to have communication-based train control (CBTC) signalling system. Our trains are unattended train operation (UTO) compatible.

The project is progressing well. Currently, we are operating North-South and East-West that span over 42.8 km with a ridership of more than four lakh commuters every day.

Mangal Dev, Head of Hitachi Rail Systems Co, India & South Asia Region feels that inadequate attention to planning, availability of funding and the need to expand the availability of skilled manpower are key challenges facing the metro rail projects in India.

Prakash Kumar Chandraker, Vice President & Managing Director, Energy Business, Schneider Electric, says that expansion of digitalisation in the metro rail space will benefit their customer as it would substantially reduce their operation and maintenance (O&M) costs in terms of the quantum of support they need.

The recent TOT bids have shown that this model can be ideal for international institutional investors who have appetite for long-term investments and access to low-cost debts.

About 24,800 km of road projects are to be developed over the next five years between 2017-18 and 2021-22 under the ambitious Bharatmala Programme.