Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has said Government has been at the forefront in supporting the industry by re-aligning its policies towards creating a business-friendly and hassle-free environment. <br />''<br />''Addressing a Webinar on "Ease of Business for Driving Investment in Roads and Highways Sector" he said country is passing through a very challenging time, both on account of the health of people and the economy of the nation due to the pandemic. He said there now seems to be positivity slowly coming all around across the globe. The Minister said various initiatives and schemes of Roads and Highways Ministry speaks volumes of the hard work and commitment that has gone into such efforts. He said this prompt and positive approach of the Government in the recent past has led to an increase in speedy implementation of Government projects.<br />''<br />''Mr Gadkari said a well-developed infrastructure has multiple benefits. Firstly, it increases the level of economic activity, it improves the revenue base of the Government, and lastly ensures expenditure is focused on productive areas. He said the COVID-19 pandemic had caused a slowdown in India, but due to the supportive policies of the government across all sectors and due to the commitment of all stakeholders, India's GDP in Quarter-1 of 2021-22 grew to a record high of 20.1 percent. <br />''<br />''He said the Government has given a massive push to the economy by allocating about 1.4 trillion dollars for infrastructure to be invested until 2025.<br />''<br />''<span style="color: #000000;">Mr Gadkari said the National Master Plan of 'Gati Shakti' scheme of more than 100 lakh crore rupees is focused for holistic and integrated infrastructure development in the country. He said the Gati Shakti Master Plan will provide the framework for the National Infrastructure Pipeline program and is aimed at making Indian products more competitive by cutting down the logistics costs and improving the supply chains.</span><br />