This paper focuses on the performance of infrastructure provisions in India in four major sectors—electricity, water and sanitation, information and communication technology, and road transportation—against the relevant group of comparator countries using a recent World Bank international database with objective and perception-based indicators of infrastructure performance over 200 countries. Overall, the study finds that the infrastructure condition is not up to mark. China, Brazil and Russia are far ahead of India. However, India is only relatively better placed in comparison with South Asian countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. These shortfalls in facilities are likely to have an adverse impact not only on the wellbeing of people but also on their long-term development prospects. It is only the information and communication Technology (ICT) sector that seems to have better prospects, because of low cost to access.

Physical infrastructure, which consists of telecommunication, power, transport, water supply, and information technology, is often viewed as the "wheels" of economic activity as it facilitates the generation of economic growth. According to the World Bank Report (WDR, 1994), the level of infrastructure development helps to diversify production, increase trade, reduce poverty, improve environmental conditions and cope with population growth. Good infrastructure raises productivity and lowers production costs, but it has to expand fast enough to accommodate growth. However, it is broadly accepted that a 1% increase in the stock of infrastructure is associated with 1% increase in gross domestic product (GDP) across all the countries (World Development Report 1994). The growth of farm productivity and non-farm rural employment is linked closely to infrastructure provision (Zhang and Fan (2001)). For example, an important aspect in China's success with rural enterprise has been a minimum package of transport, telecommunications, and power at the village level. Rural enterprises in China now employ more than 100 million people (18% of the labor force) and produce more than one-third of national output (WDR, 1994).

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