Attending the dinner were senior representatives of UK companies Scott Wilson, Balfour Beatty Rail, Amec, JCB and Barclays Capital as well Indian companies Tata, Wipro, IIFCL and ICICI bank. Politicians present included Barry Gardiner, chair of the all-party parliamentary group, Patricia Hewitt, chair of the UK-India business council, and Geoffrey Clifton Brown, the shadow trade minister. Join discussion...

The details of agreements signed by governments with private organisations to execute projects can no longer be kept secret, the Central Information Commission (CIC) has ruled. If a right to information (RTI) application is moved seeking the relevant information, it will have to be provided. The decision is likely to have far-reaching and potentially damaging implications as private companies may well shy away from such close scrutiny of their financial arrangements. So far the text of PPP agreements could be kept confidential, citing business interests. Join discussion...

The Mumbai Metro's second line from Charkop to Mankhurd via Bandra has come closer to reality with Anil Ambani's Reliance Infrastructure Ltd (RIL) putting in the sole bid for the 32-km railway line. The RIL submission came on Friday afternoon at the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) office in Bandra (E) after a subtle war of nerves with the rival, Mukesh Ambani Group's representatives who waited till the end but did not submit their sealed tender envelope. Join discussion...

The state government’s ambitious project — the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link— which has had a series of flip-flops over its implementation and financing model, now has yet another model being proposed. Having failed to attract any bidder for a cash contract where the state government would fund the project fully, officials are now considering returning to the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model. Join discussion...

The Maharashtra government and Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) received another setback on Friday, as there were no bids in the second round for the Mumbai trans-harbour link. MSRDC officials were optimistic that two to three consortiums would come forward to construct the 22-km sealink. Join discussion...

Parvez Umrigar, MD, Gammon Infrastructure Projects said the company has no joint venture or any dealings with Ritwik Projects and SEW Infrastructure. Meanwhile, commenting on the ongoing projects, Umrigar said Phase I of Mumbai-Nasik expressway will commence by April 2009. Join discussion...

The growth of air traffic in India has increased aircraft movement per airport, which in turn, has necessitated an expansion of the capacity of airports or development of new airports. Airport development primarily involves the improvement of the land, as well as air areas and the terminal building. Join discussion...

Though seven bidders had qualified for the second phase of the Mumbai Metro last year, none of them submitted financial bids for the project till the last date on Friday. The Government will now have to restart the bidding process, resulting in a delay of another four months. Join discussion...

Indira Container Terminal Pvt. the special purpose vehicle incorporated by Gammon Infrastructure (Q, N,C,F)* Projects has achieved the `financial closure` for developing the Mumbai offshore container terminal project with a consortium of bankers for an aggregate amount not exceeding Rs 8125.30 million. Join discussion...