What does the National Logistics Policy, introduced by PM Modi, seek to accomplish?

 When the PM Gati Shakti-National Master Plan for multi-modal connectivity was introduced in October 2021, Prime Minister Modi had stated that "excessive logistical costs have significantly hampered the competitiveness of India's exports."

On Saturday, September 17, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the National Logistics Policy, which aims to facilitate the transportation of commodities and strengthen the commerce sector in the Indian economy. The PM made reference to the reintroduction of cheetahs in India when he announced the launch of the initiative, saying that luggage should move quickly like a cheetah while noting that logistical costs currently represent 13 to 14% of India's GDP, nearly twice as much as they do in developed nations.

What made a logistics policy necessary?

Transportation services for moving goods, storage facilities that are especially important for trade in perishable goods like food, fruits, and vegetables, as well as the efficient operation of government services that assist commerce like licencing and customs are all included in logistics.

   In October 2021, when the PM Gati Shakti-National Master Plan for multi-modal connectivity was introduced, Prime Minister Modi stated that the logistical costs in India accounted for almost 13% of GDP. In industrialised nations, this condition does not exist. India's exports are significantly less competitive due to high logistics costs.

         Gujarat, Punjab, and Haryana were rated as the top three states for logistics ease in a Ministry of Commerce and Industry assessment last year titled "Logistics Ease Across Different States." The factors taken into consideration were the standard of the road and rail networks, the cost of shipping goods by road, the standard of the warehousing facilities, etc. The survey recommended that governments concentrate on things like building infrastructure for sector-specific skilling and streamlining procedures for clearance and approval connected to logistics.

What qualities does the National Logistics Policy have?

        The Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP), Ease of Logistics (ELOG), System Improvement Group, and Integration of Digital System (IDS) are the four components of the new logistics policy (SIG). The IDS integrates 30 distinct systems from seven agencies, including information from the departments of road transportation, railroads, customs, aviation, and commerce.

        The Prime Minister said that a ULIP, or Unified Logistics Interface Platform, would "bring all the digital services relating to the transportation sector into a single interface." Similar to this, a new digital platform called Ease of Logistics Services (E-Logs) has been launched to let business associations communicate with the government to resolve problems.

What strategies is the government using to improve logistics?

          The FASTag for electronic toll tax collection and faceless assessment for customs are two earlier programmes and schemes announced by the prime minister that were intended to enhance logistics-related factors. The Gati Shakti master plan is the largest of these plans in terms of scope, and according to the PM, "a tremendous amount of material linked to various infrastructure projects of state governments has been prepared." The PM Gatishakti site is now receiving data in roughly 1500 levels from the federal and state governments.

         In his Independence Day speech from the previous year, the prime minister said: "In the coming days, we will launch PM Gati Shakti Plan, a 100 lakh crore national infrastructure master plan which would establish a foundation for holistic infrastructure and give an integrated pathway to our economy."

      For ministries to track the development of multiple infrastructure projects, a single portal was established. In a later statement, the PM stated that the Centre aimed to nearly double the current natural gas pipeline network of 19,000 km by building over 200 new airports, helipads, and water aerodromes where planes can land over the course of the next 4 to 5 years.