Manguirish Pai Raiker highlights how PRAGATI has evolved into a transformative governance instrument, leveraging technology-driven coordination to institutionalise accountability across India’s federal structure
Prime Minister’s flagship platform for Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation (PRAGATI) has marked a significant milestone with the successful conduct of its 50th meeting. Since its launch by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015, PRAGATI has transformed governance by enabling real-time monitoring and resolution of key infrastructure projects and public grievances through direct Prime Ministerial review.
The platform exemplifies cooperative federalism, bringing together the Centre, States, and Union Ministries on a single digital interface. Over a decade, PRAGATI has helped accelerate decision-making, resolution of issues causing delay in key infrastructure projects, and instilled a strong culture of accountability. It has also emerged as a platform for governance reforms, not merely monitoring.
According to the PRAGATI and Project Monitoring Group (PMG) portal, over 3,300 projects with an aggregate value exceeding `85 lakh crores are currently under various stages of implementation. Various projects, spanning roads, railways, power, airports, and urban infrastructure, are accelerated under the Centre’s flagship PRAGATI platform, underscoring how technology-driven coordination has reshaped India’s project implementation landscape. In addition, 61 major government schemes including One Nation One Ration Card, PM Jan Arogya Yojana, PM Awas Yojana and Swachh Bharat Mission are tracked, along with citizen grievances across 36 sectors ranging from banking and insurance to RERA and social welfare.
As PRAGATI completed 50 review meetings, the mechanism has emerged as a key institutional tool to tackle chronic delays and cost overruns in large public projects. The platform is also preventive. This mechanism has prevented time and cost overruns in many projects by raising issues promptly before they arise, especially on critical projects.
This idea was conceived in 2015 as Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation (PRAGATI) was designed to address three persistent coordination failures: between central ministries, between the Centre and states, and within the state governments. At its apex, The Prime Minister directly reviews stalled projects and underperforming schemes with chief secretaries and senior central officials, cutting through layers of administrative silos.
The impact is visible in numbers. Of the 7,735 issues flagged across projects and schemes, 7,156 have been resolved so far, translating into a resolution rate of over 90%. For projects directly reviewed by the Prime Minister, 2,958 out of 3,187 issues have been settled, with land acquisition, environmental clearances and right of way disputes accounting for the bulk of bottlenecks. Several long-pending marquee projects have moved to completion under PRAGATI’s oversight. The Jammu–Udhampur–Srinagar–Baramulla rail link, approved in 1994, was commissioned in 2025 after progress accelerated post PRAGATI reviews. Similarly, the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA), stuck for years, became operational in December 2025 following sustained monitoring.
The doubling of the Bhubaneswar-Delang-Puri Rail Line of 70 kilometers was a critical railway infrastructure project undertaken by the Ministry of Railways and implemented by East Coast Railway in Odisha.
The project, worth `1650 crores, was sanctioned in March 2012. This project was conceived in anticipation of the Nabakalebara festival scheduled in July 2015, which was expected to attract nearly 50 lakh devotees.
During construction, the project faced significant challenges concerning timely completion and commissioning. While substantial progress had been achieved, including doubling of the 40-kilometre Bhubaneswar-Delang section and the 13-kilometre Delang-Sakhigopal section, the remaining 17 km Sakhigopal-Puri stretch remained under execution. To avoid delay, Prime Minister Modi reviewed the projects under PRAGATI in June 2015.
During the review, Prime Minister Modi directed the Ministry of Railways to ensure completion of all works well before the festival, and the State Government was advised to focus on security, drinking water and sanitation issues.
This directive brought focused accountability to the implementing agency and elevated the project to a priority status. Following these interventions, the project achieved 100 per cent physical progress and was commissioned on 2nd July 2015.
An external study by Oxford University’s Said Business School has described PRAGATI as a global benchmark in digital governance, calling it a “single source of truth” for real-time project monitoring and cooperative federalism.
As India scales up capital expenditure, PRAGATI’s portfolio highlights how institutional reforms, not just funding, are shaping the country’s infrastructure push.
The writer is a senior industry leader; having led GCCI, GSIA, GMA and ASSOCHAM Goa Council, over the years. Email: rsaawni@gmail.com
