Budget 2022: PM Gati Shakti Plan may boost infrastructure funds

FM Nirmala Sitharaman declared that the government will enhance the national highway network by 25,000 kilometres under the PM Gati Shakti master plan in 2022-23. Continue reading to know how infrastructure funds may benefit.

While presenting Budget 2022, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman declared that the government will extend the national highway network by 25,000 kilometres under the PM Gati Shakti master plan in the fiscal year 2022-23.  

According to the Economic Survey on January 31, 2022, there has been a consistent increase in the construction of national highways or roads since FY 2013-14 with 13,327 kilometres constructed in 2020-21 as compared to 10,237 kilometres in FY 2019-20, denoting a 30.2 per cent increase over the previous year. As per the Economic Survey submitted in Parliament, "Infrastructure is the backbone of every economy." 

It further stated that 3,824 kilometres of roads were built in FY 2021-22 (till September). This huge increase can be attributable to a 29.5 per cent increase in government spending during the previous year. According to the economic study, road infrastructure is seen as a powerful source of socio-economic growth in the country that creates decent jobs. 

Having said that, this will assist stocks in the infrastructure sector, such as construction, engineering, energy, metals, communication, and so on. As a result, infrastructure funds are expected to perform better. In line with this, we have ranked the top five infrastructure funds: