A revival in private sector investment is boosting India’s biggest construction firm Larsen & Toubro Limited’s order book, complementing the steady flow of government-led infrastructure projects that supported growth since the pandemic, Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Chairman and Managing Director S N Subrahmanyan told Moneycontrol in an exclusive interaction.
“During COVID, private sector investment froze. Balance sheets were stretched, sentiment was weak, and nobody wanted to commit capital. At that time, government orders kept us afloat — and I must give full credit to the Government of India for stepping up,” he said.
Subrahmanyan added that the picture has now changed, with private corporations returning to the investment cycle.
“Today, however, private orders are back. We now have orders from all the major groups. Some of the recent announcements that we have made are all private orders. I am not an economist to comment on whether India is at an ‘inflection point,’ but I can say we have enough private orders in our books. All the major groups are spending, and we have good relationships with them,” said Subrahmanyan.
He added that the Indian private sector is expanding its capacity across sectors such as steel, copper, aluminum, zinc as well as industries such as automobiles and semiconductors.
The L&T chairman highlighted that this new wave of private capex is spread across industries and is increasingly visible in L&T’s project flows. Fast-track factory projects, in particular, are helping accelerate execution cycles, creating a healthier mix in the order book alongside longer-gestation public projects.
“We have many fast-track factories worth Rs 500–600 crore each, to be executed in 8 to 12 months. So we are positive about this piece,” he said.
At the same time, government spending on large-scale initiatives such as the Central Vista, metro networks, dedicated freight corridors, and rural electrification has provided a strong foundation for growth. This dual engine of public and private investment is, he noted, giving the company confidence about sustained momentum in the years ahead.
He emphasized that private sector activity is no longer tentative but part of a broader trend of renewed industrial expansion.
“Our order book now reflects this shift,” he said.
With an order backlog exceeding Rs 6 lakh crore and a growing share of private projects, Subrahmanyan noted that L&T sees itself well-positioned to ride India’s capex cycle.
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