- Why in news
- On 23 March 2026, the government told the Rajya Sabha that as of January 2026 the PAIMANA portal tracks 1,702 central infrastructure projects across 17 Ministries/Departments.
- What it is
- PAIMANA is a web monitoring system run by MoSPI to track ongoing Central Sector infrastructure projects costing Rs. 150 crore and above. It gives line ministries dashboards and analytics on project progress and slippages. It works alongside other mechanisms such as DPIIT's Project Monitoring Group and PRAGATI.
- Full form and owner
- PAIMANA stands for Project Assessment Infrastructure Monitoring and Analytics for Nation-Building. MoSPI runs it.
- Coverage
- As of January 2026 it tracks 1,702 projects of 17 Central Ministries/Departments. Original cost is ₹33.71 lakh crore and expenditure so far is ₹20.01 lakh crore.
- One Data One Entry
- PAIMANA is linked through APIs to DPIIT's Integrated Project Monitoring Portal (IPMP). Data reported by ministries and agencies is fetched automatically.
- PRAGATI
- The Prime Minister reviews projects periodically through video conferencing under PRAGATI meetings.
- Threshold
- MoSPI monitors ongoing Central Sector infrastructure projects costing Rs. 150 crore and above.
- Launch and predecessor
- PAIMANA was launched on 25 September 2025 and replaced OCMS-2006.
- Automation
- About 60 per cent of projects of the Road, Petroleum & Natural Gas and Coal ministries are updated automatically.
Don’t confuse with PAIMANA vs PMG: PAIMANA is MoSPI's portal for projects of Rs. 150 crore and above. PMG is a DPIIT body for issue resolution on projects of Rs. 500 crore and above.
Don’t confuse with PAIMANA vs IPMP: IPMP is DPIIT's portal from which PAIMANA fetches data. PAIMANA is MoSPI's monitoring and analytics system.
Don’t confuse with PAIMANA vs PRAGATI: PAIMANA monitors infrastructure projects through data and reports; PRAGATI is a Prime Minister-led platform for reviewing projects and grievances.
Schemes: 52 Prelims questions since 2013, 10 in Prelims 2026 alone. They test features, the period and who funds it. In Mains, 33 news-triggered questions, mostly GS3.
Why it matters
- Single-entry, API-fed data cuts manual reporting and gives evidence for monitoring project delays and cost overruns.
- Dashboards let line ministries see slippages and act early.
- Cuts duplicate data entry and gives one centralised data source on large infrastructure projects.
- Flash reports and analytics help spot delays and cost overruns early.
Problems
- Data quality depends on timely reporting by implementing agencies; only about 64 per cent of projects of three ministries update automatically.
- Several overlapping bodies (MoSPI, PMG, PRAGATI) risk duplication.
- Data quality depends on timely updates by line ministries and agencies.
- Several overlapping monitoring platforms can cause duplication and confusion.
Way forward
- Extend automatic data feeds to more ministries and agencies.
- Link the analytics to clear escalation and accountability for delayed projects.
- Raise automatic data flow through APIs to more ministries and projects.
- Use the analytics to trigger action on stalled projects, not only reporting.
Put in your answer
PAIMANA scale: 1,702 projects with original cost of ₹33.71 lakh crore and expenditure of ₹20.01 lakh crore, as of January 2026.
Automation level: About 64 per cent of projects of the Road Transport & Highways, Petroleum & Natural Gas and Coal ministries are updated automatically.
Project scale: 1,392 projects with original cost of ₹29.68 lakh crore and expenditure of ₹19.01 lakh crore as of December 2025.
Governance principle: The 'One Data One Entry' principle reduces manual entry and improves accuracy.
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UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Lasting monitoring portal for projects of Rs 150 crore and above; facts exist but UPSC rarely asks about such portals.
Worth revising until Prelims 2027: most news questions come within two years of the event.