Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has called for awarding contracts to private players in a fair and transparent manner to eliminate any possibility of favoritism or crony capitalism. He asserted that public interest must be foremost while awarding Public Private Partnership contracts in the infrastructure sector.Inaugurating the conference on national Highways in New Delhi on Monday, Dr Singh said that the State Governments have a crucial role to play in developing road infrastructure. Dr Singh urged all States to develop their respective Highway Development Programme for coordinated and time bound development of all roads.The Prime Minister stated that the infrastructure sector faces huge financial constraint especially for long term debt. He said that the Infrastructure Debt Fund being set up the Finance Ministry will go a long way in addressing this issue. Inviting private investment for developing road infrastructure, the Prime Minister said that a high level committee has been constituted to suggest necessary measures for speeding up infrastructure development.Dr Singh also appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of Roadways for attracting the second largest private investment for development of roads among the developing countries.Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh called for awarding contracts to private players in a fair and transparent manner to eliminate any possibility of favourtism or crony capitalism. He asserted that public interest must be foremost while awarding Public Private Partnership contracts in the infrastructure sector.