INFORM: Infrastructure, Projects & Finance – Oct 2026

In our latest edition, we have shared the trends shaping the infrastructure landscape and key developments in projects and finance, with certain case laws highlighting the judicial perspective.

Case laws:

• Blacklisting Unsustainable on Mere Disputes on Interpretation of Tender Conditions: Madras HC
• Cancellation of Tender for Inadvertently Low ePBG Held Arbitrary: Allahabad High Court
• Tendering Authority Best Judge of Eligibility Conditions: Patna High Court
• Eligibility Conditions in Tender Must Be Strictly Applied: Supreme Court
• Discrepancy in Signatures Justifies Technical Disqualification: Patna High Court

Notifications/Circulars:

• GST on Royalty: NHAI Prescribes Interim Mechanism Pending SC Adjudication
• SOP Prescribed for Issuance of Experience Certificates to Contractors in HAM Projects
• MoRTH Clarifies Basis for Calculation of APS for Abnormally Low Bids
• NHAI Tightens Plantation Compliance Requirements for Highway Projects
• NHAI Strengthens Monitoring and Penalty Framework for ATMS Works
• NHAI Eases Equipment Mobilisation Requirements under PBMC RFPs
• NHAI Modifies Technical Eligibility Criteria for EPC Projects of Utmost Priority
• CERC Proposes Second Amendment to Indian Electricity Grid Code Regulations

Quick Reads:

• New Guidelines for High-Speed Access-Controlled National Highways
• Government Eases Exit Framework for Hybrid Annuity Highway Projects
• Strict Action Against Concessionaire Following Defects in Kanpur–Lucknow Expressway
• Special Quality Inspections Initiated for 17 Highway Projects with Low Bids
• Karnataka Shifts Focus Towards Integrated Maritime Development
• Madras HC Seeks Report on Road Quality Control and Accountability Mechanism
• DPIIT and ADB Develop Grading Framework for Warehouses and Cold Chains