During the current fiscal year 2023-2024, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) plans to introduce the third and fourth series of Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs), with a goal of raising more than Rs 20,000 crore. NHAI intends to raise Rs 12,000 crore through the release of the third tranche of InvIT, which is planned for release in June, according to sources. The third phase of InvIT was delayed due to taxation complications; however, these problems were rectified by the government in March of this year.
The government initially proposed taxing the revenue distributed by business trusts, such as REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts) and InvITs, as debt repayments in the hands of the unitholders in the Union Budget for FY 23–24. The government eventually changed its mind and suggested classifying dividends from firms as a return of capital in order to ease the burden on investors.
Three alternative modes are used by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) to monetize its assets. Project-based finance, the toll-operate-transfer (TOT) model, and InvIT are also included. All types of investors have the opportunity to participate in highway and related infrastructure assets using these methods.
