Cash-strapped MSRDC floats new company

The frequent denials by the state government in allowing the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) to undertake infrastructure projects in the city has forced the cash-strapped agency to float a new company — MSRDC India International.

The frequent denials by the state government in allowing the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) to undertake infrastructure projects in the city has forced the cash-strapped agency to float a new company — MSRDC India International. The new firm will undertake infrastructure work through a joint venture or by tying up with a financial partner to work on these projects, outside the state and also across the world.

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“Our board has decided to set up a new company, MSRDC India International, which will take up infrastructure works globally as well as in other states. We have already got requests from Rajasthan and Karnataka to undertake integrated road development project in their states,” MSRDC vice chairman and managing director Bipin Shrimali said on Wednesday.

The new entity will also take up infrastructure projects across the world. Sources said MSRDC is in talks with the US Highway Authority and certain European countries to take up projects undertaken by the respective agencies and countries, he said.

The MSRDC, which is in a precarious financial state, has taken this decision as the agency has been sidelined within the government.

Most of the big ticket projects, which were to be taken up by the corporation have been handed over to other agencies.

The agency was supposed to construct the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, but the project was handed over to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA).

Similarly, its flagship project of building sea links in Mumbai has been stalled as the government has instead decided to build coastal roads. In this case too, the government has been propping up the name of the civic body to take up the project.

Many blame the political war between the Congress and NCP for the corporation’s predicament. The MSRDC portfolio is with the NCP and there are murmurs that the Congress leadership is stifling the agency for this reason.

The MSRDC believes it has the expertise and is globally recognised for undertaking two major projects such as the Bandra Worli Sea Link and the Mumbai Pune Expressway.

“We have resources at our disposal, which are unutilised. So we thought that we could use them to take up work outside the state and also across the world and earn money,” he said.