The ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH) has updated its performance rating framework for detailed project report (DPR) consultants to boost accountability, encourage firms to build end-to-end consultancy capabilities, and improve highway planning, according to two people aware of the matter.
Under the revised rules, associate partner firms will now receive 75% of the rating awarded to the lead consultant or joint venture (JV) partner, ending the previous practice of giving all partners identical scores, one of the people said. Associate ratings will also be published separately, while JV partners will continue to get full project ratings, this person added.
The consultant rating system serves as a performance database maintained by the road ministry for DPR consultants on national highway projects. Ratings are based on completed DPR assignments and set evaluation parameters, offering an objective track record of a firm’s performance.
The ministry cited the poor quality of DPRs as one of the reasons for delays in highway construction projects and lower awards, the second person quoted above said. Highway project awards dropped from 12,376 km in FY23 to about 7,538 km in FY25, and in FY26 India's highway sector saw a seven-year low in new project awards around 7,000 km. Construction activity has also slowed. After hitting 10,331 km in FY23, 12,349 km in FY24, and 10,660 km in FY25, highway construction fell to an eight-year low of 9,380 km in FY26, dropping below the 9,829 km built in FY18.
The amendment seeks to correct what industry experts described as a structural weakness in the earlier framework, under which firms executing a limited scope of work received the same performance recognition as lead consultants responsible for the entire DPR, including surveys, alignment, design integration, statutory approvals, cost estimates and final deliverables.
While the ministry did not clarify why it set the associate weight at 75%, experts noted that the figure recognizes an associate firm's technical contribution while keeping final contractual accountability with the lead consultant.
Queries mailed to the ministry remained unanswered at the time of publishing.
Fixing execution
Industry experts expect the amendment to improve DPR quality by giving lead consultants a stronger incentive to exercise tighter quality control over surveys, investigations, engineering designs and project coordination. Since DPRs form the technical and financial foundation for highway projects, better consultant accountability could help reduce design revisions, cost overruns and implementation delays.
Shailesh Agarwal, partner, risk consulting (infrastructure) at EY India, said, “The revised framework links ratings with the level of responsibility undertaken on a project, making consultant assessments more representative of actual contribution.” The move will improve the credibility of consultant ratings, strengthen accountability, and encourage firms to take on complete DPR assignments rather than rely primarily on associate roles, he added.
Sanjay Kumar Sinha, founder and managing director of Chaitanya Projects Consultancy Ltd, said the change aligns the rating mechanism with the realities of infrastructure consultancy. “The ministry’s move to differentiate ratings by proportionate responsibility is a sensible correction,” he said. Consultant ratings are expected to carry increasing weight in future bid evaluations, so it’s critical that they accurately reflect actual responsibility, he added.
Market impact
The revised framework is also expected to reshape competition within the highway consultancy sector in distinct ways. Lead firms stand to gain the most, as their scores will better capture the responsibility they bear. High-performing companies will secure a competitive edge in upcoming bids, whereas associate firms may struggle to build strong ratings through associate roles alone.
Sinha said the changes create both challenges and opportunities, particularly for smaller firms. “The game is shifting from who you associate with to what you can independently deliver,” he said, adding that firms will now need to invest in technical capabilities, systems and talent to improve their ratings. Consequently, more firms may seek opportunities to participate as lead consultants or JV leads over time to strengthen their credentials.
According to Agarwal, these scores are critical because they build consultant credibility, help agencies identify reliable firms, ensure higher quality and timely delivery, boost selection transparency, and foster a performance-driven ecosystem beyond just technical qualifications and financial bids. While consultant selection still adheres to standard procurement rules, a strong performance rating is increasingly becoming a key differentiator in securing highway consultancy contracts, he added.