In a big relief to investors, the Union government has cleared big-ticket investment projects worth Rs 1.1 lakh crore. The projects were held up for years for want of several government clearances. The clearances relate to 18 power projects with a generation capacity of 15,500 mw, four highway projects worth Rs 4,400 crore, and a Rs 1,200-crore steel plant in Odisha.    

For the power projects cleared, the Union Coal Ministry has agreed to sign fuel supply agreements by August 31. Three critical railway lines in poorly connected states such as Chhattisgarh, Mizoram and Assam, with an investment outlay of over Rs 7,100 crore, have secured the requisite clearances to finish construction.    

Bharat Petroleum's petroleum distillation units worth Rs 1,419 crore have also got the approvals from the government. A special project monitoring group, set up by the prime minister in June, has cleared the projects after intensive project-wise discussions with the ministries concerned.    

Even the Union FInance Minister P Chidambaram took immense initiative to clear the projects to revive the investors' sentiment, the media reports say.