India marks one year of National Logistics Policy

According to an official release by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, To complement PM GatiShakti’s National Master Plan, the National Logistics Policy was launched on 17 September 2022 by PM Narendra Modi

New Delhi: India marked one year of the National Logistics Policy on September 17, 2023, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the NLP last year to complement PM GatiShakti’s National Master Plan (NMP).

According to an official release by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, “To complement PM GatiShakti’s National Master Plan (NMP), the National Logistics Policy (NLP) was launched on 17 September 2022 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.” While the PM GatiShakti NMP addresses integrated development of the fixed infrastructure and network planning, the NLP addresses the soft infrastructure and logistics sector development aspect, inter alia, including process reforms, improvement in logistics services, digitization, human resource development and skilling, said the release.

As per the release, the vision of NLP is to drive economic growth and business competitiveness of the country through an integrated, seamless, efficient, reliable, green, sustainable and cost-effective logistics network by leveraging best-in-class technology, processes and skilled manpower. This will reduce logistics costs and improve performance.

The targets of the NLP are to reduce the cost of logistics in India, improve the Logistics Performance Index ranking – the endeavour is to be among the top 25 countries by 2030 and create a data-driven decision support mechanism for an efficient logistics ecosystem, it said.

“To achieve these targets, a Comprehensive Logistics Action Plan (CLAP) as part of the NLP was launched covering eight action areas including Integrated Digital Logistics Systems, Standardization of Physical Assets and Benchmarking of Service Quality Standards, Logistics Human Resource Development and Capacity Building, State engagement, EXIM Logistics, Services Improvement Framework, Sectoral Plans for Efficient Logistics (SPEL) and Facilitation of Development of Logistics Parks,” it added.

Since the launch of the NLP, significant progress has been made with respect to the implementation of the Policy. By means of regional conferences, one-on-one interactions, and inter-ministerial meetings, DPIIT has facilitated the implementation of NLP.

An overview of these outreach activities is the Inter-Ministerial meeting on 28 July 2023.

On completion of ten months of the launch of the National Logistics Policy (NLP), an inter-ministerial meeting to review the progress of its implementation was held by DPIIT, on 28 July 2023, it said.

During the meeting measures taken by different Ministries to improve logistics efficiency in the country were showcased.

The meeting saw participation from eleven infrastructure and user Ministries including the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH), Port Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) and others.

The meeting was Chaired by the Special Secretary (Logistics). Secretary DPIIT joined during the closing session, said the release.

The meeting was divided into two sessions. Session, I focussed on a review of measures undertaken by DPIIT and Session II covered progress in the implementation of the NLP by participating Ministries.

DPIIT organised five regional workshops between 20 March and 12 April 2023. All workshops had a dedicated session on NLP, wherein key features and progress of NLP were showcased and participating States/UTs presented the status and key highlights of respective State Logistics Policies and other interventions, according to the release.

Over 500 participants covering Officials from all 36 States/UTs and concerned line Ministries/Department, and representatives from knowledge partners and multilateral organisations, attended these workshops, it added.

In an endeavour to further improve India’s ranking in the LPI, DPIIT has undertaken several measures.

“To appraise the World Bank team about the several initiatives and reforms of the Government of India and draw their attention to the need for greater emphasis on objective-based methodology for LPI scoring, the Secretary of DPIIT met senior officials of World Bank Group at their headquarters in Washington DC,” said the release.

In continuation with that DPIIT held a series of meetings with the World Bank Group [Logistics and Infrastructure India team] and concerned line Ministries.

A dedicated Unit is being set up within the Logistics Division to develop and implement an action plan for improving India’s LPI ranking.

In addition, concerned line Ministries are setting up a dedicated cell for a focused project-based approach to improving India’s performance across the six LPI parameters.

“In line with an approved institutional mechanism for the NLP, an Inter-Ministerial SIG was constituted on 14 March 2023. Chaired by SS (Logistics), this group comprises representatives from MoRTH, MoR, MoPSW, MNRE, MoP, DoT, MoPNG, MoCA, NITI
Aayog, MoEFCC, MoHUA, DoR and DoC,” said the release.

The SIG has been constituted to facilitate speedy resolution of logistics services and processes-related issues of the industry, in a coordinated manner. Resolution of issues through SIG shall promote inter-operability; eliminate fragmentation in documentation, formats, processes, and liability regimes and reduce gaps in regulatory architecture, it added.

As of date, 29 logistics sector associations are registered on the E-LoGs portal, with a total of 71 issues, of which 34 issues have been resolved.

Regular roundtables with industry players and SIG meetings are held. To date, six meetings of SIG, along with industry associations have been held, it said.

For digital integration in the logistics sector and to provide a single sign to users who are trading goods and using multiple modes of transport the Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP) was launched along with the NLP, according to the release.

ULIP is an indigenous data-based platform that integrates 34 logistics-related digital systems /portals across Ministries / Departments. It is worth noting that GST data is also being integrated with ULIP.

ULIP provides opportunities for the private sector to develop use cases on ULIP. By signing Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) and after due diligence, data on ULIP can be accessed through API integration and private players can develop apps/use cases, it added.

“Over 614 industry players have registered on ULIP. 106 private companies have signed NDAs142 companies have submitted 382 use cases to be hosted on ULIP. 57 applications have been made live,” it said.

Infrastructure gaps are being addressed and digital initiatives are being undertaken (under the National Committee on Trade Facilitation), an EXIM Logistics Group has been constituted,and a comprehensive port connectivity plan developed by M/o port shipping and waterways, to address last and first mile infra gaps and promote seamless movement of goods to ports.

“60 projects of MORTH and 47 Railways have been sanctioned to improve last-mile connectivity to ports. To improve port productivity and address issues, several meetings have been held with MOPSW, port authorities, etc., port process studies have been conducted at 3 Major Ports (Chennai, JNPT and Vishakhapatnam), and visits to ports are being undertaken by DPIIT,” said the release.

The Logistics Data Bank (LDB) is an application that tracks and traces EXIM cargo.

With greater predictability, transparency and reliability, logistics costs will come down and wastages in the supply chain will be reduced, it said.

“Using LDB data, a new analysis of port-wise vessel turnaround time is being prepared. Congestion between the port and the nearest check post is provided in the form of Port to CFS/ICD (For import cycle), CFS/ICD to Port (For export cycle), and Port to the nearest toll plaza,” it added.

Using these analytics, port authorities are taking measures to improve performance, said the release.