What next on govt agenda? 35 multimodal logistics parks

Union Road Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said poverty should be eliminated and transport infrastructure integrated and augmented to achieve a double-digit growth,

Gadkari was speaking at the inauguration of the India Integrated Transport and Logistics (IITL) Summit.

The three-day event is in line with the government's plans of creating good multi-modal logistics and improving the transport sector in order to boost India's economy, and will garner Rs 2 lakh crore in investments, the minister said.

The minister said that the government plans to bring down logistics costs drastically to enhance exports and create huge employment. The Road Transport and Highways Ministry is planning to build 35 multi-modal logistics parks in the country, land for six of which has already been identified. The minister said it will cater to 50 per cent of the freight movement, enable 10 per cent reduction in transportation costs and a 12 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions.

The parks will be developed jointly by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), National Highways Infrastructure Development Corporation (NHDICL) and the respective state governments. The government is also working to formulate a uniform policy for the development of MMLPs, which would be set up on a grid of railways, highways, inland waterways and airports transportation.