India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches the National Logistics Policy (NLP) at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, on Friday.
Today is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday. To address the issues of high cost and inefficiency in the Indian logistics sector, he launched the National Logistics Policy (NLP) at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
We have been working towards a unified solution, which has come in the form of the NLP, said Modi as he launched the policy. This will help with quick last-mile delivery, transport-related difficulties, cost-saving by manufacturers and industrialists, and the avoidance of delays-induced wastage of agro products.
He said that the country’s logistics costs, which are currently 14 percent of the GDP, can be reduced to a single digit with some effort.
The NLP will work to make everyday life and doing business easier by creating a framework that can be used by different sectors and jurisdictions to develop the logistics ecosystem.
The policy was created to reduce costs that are higher in India than in other developed economies. The policy also targets limiting the losses that occur while transporting perishable goods by improving warehousing and cold chain efficiency.
The Indian logistics sector is very complicated, with over 20 government agencies, 37 export promotion councils, 12 million employees, 36 logistics services, and 200 shipping agencies. It is estimated that the sector will be worth $215 billion in the next two years, compared to $160 billion at present.
Covid-19 showed the world how strong India’s logistics sector is. Everything from food to essential goods was delivered on time. Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal listed various policies aimed at improving the country’s transport infrastructure, such as UDAN, National Infrastructure Pipeline, Bharat Mala, Sagar Mala, PM Gati Shakti, etc. Goyal stated that the NLP will work with the strength of a “double engine” to transform the sector.
“India is the first and only country in the world to have a digital framework for all infrastructural projects,” said R Dinesh, managing director of TVS Supply Chain Solutions. The National Logistics Portal (NLP) will create a paperless supply chain that is completely digitally connected. This will increase our export competitiveness and reduce our carbon footprint,” said Dinesh.
In India, where road transport is very important, an integrated infrastructure will make it easier to move between different modes of transportation.
Fred Cole is a seasoned news reporter with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He has worked for some of the biggest news outlets in the country, including the Associated Press and CNN.