Corrosion is costing India’s infrastructure sector an estimated ₹1.42 lakh crore annually, equivalent to around 2.9% of infrastructure-sector GDP, while effective prevention could save up to ₹49,580 crore every year. According to the CII-NRI Report on the Economic Impact of Corrosion, presented at the CII Annual Infrastructure Summit 2026 in New Delhi, corrosion across the Indian economy costs around ₹14.15 lakh crore annually, or 4.3% of GDP, with potential savings of up to ₹4.95 lakh crore.
Ashim Sharma, Senior Partner, Nomura Research Institute Consulting and Solutions India, said infrastructure durability must be treated as an economic issue and that corrosion protection should be considered at the design and procurement stage.
M.V. Satish, Advisor to the CMD, Larsen & Toubro and Chairman, CII National Committee on Road Transport & Highways, stressed the need to move from lowest upfront cost to lifecycle value, supported by exposure-based standards and appropriate corrosion protection. The report notes that while multi-coat painting has a lower initial cost, its lifecycle cost can be almost twice as high due to repeated repainting, whereas hot-dip galvanizing costs around 10% more upfront and can provide over 100 years of protection without routine maintenance coating.
The report recommends exposure-based corrosion-protection requirements, especially for coastal and high-humidity infrastructure, along with service-life frameworks for TMT and structural steel, improved coating specifications, modern testing methods, stronger inspection and enforcement, lifecycle-cost-based material selection, and training for contractors and engineers. BVN Rao, Business Chairman – Transportation & Urban Infrastructure, GMR Group and Chairman, CII Infrastructure Council, Dr. Rajesh Kapoor, Executive Director, CII, M.V. Satish, and Ashim Sharma were present at the CII Annual Infrastructure Summit 2026 in New Delhi.