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India to become a developed economy by 2047; Warehousing and logistics sector to play key role in achieving the target: Sumita Dawra, Special Secretary (Logistics), DPIIT
Jul 27, 2023
NEW DELHI, 27 July 2023: Ms Sumita Dawra, Special Secretary (Logistics), Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Govt of India today said that the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan (PMGS-NMP) will be instrumental in enabling the growth of infrastructure sector and assist the industry in executing business operations more efficiently.
Addressing the ‘FICCI Warehousing and Supply Chain Summit’, Ms Dawra stated that the logistics and warehousing industry will have to play a pivotal role to help achieve the larger objective of the PMGS-NMP which is focussed on making India a developed economy by 2047. “Better warehousing not only makes the manufacturing sector more efficient but also brings more investments, makes supply chain more resilient and generates more economic value,” she added.
Ms Dawra also alluded to various government initiatives like PM Gatishakti, digitalization, big data analytics and multimodal logistics parks to support the industry in its endeavour to be global leader.
Citing the example of Jogighopa multimodal logistics park (MMLP) situated at the banks of Brahmaputra in Assam, Ms Dawra talked about how different forms of transport i.e., railways, highways and waterways are being utilized in bringing efficiency in logistics, reduce travel time and save costs.
Mr Amit Kumar Singh, Managing Director & Director (M&CP), Central Warehousing Corporation said, "Cost effectiveness, reliability, resilience and sustainability are the founding stones of any efficient supply chain. India has done a fairly good job in creating warehouses for foodgrains; however, we still lag in developing warehousing for other sectors. The domestic warehousing sector is scattered and therefore it is very difficult to bring any standardization. There is a huge opportunity of consolidation and standardization in the domestic cargo industry.”
Mr T K Manoj Kumar, Chairman, Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) said, "Standardization and digitalization will carve out definitive solutions most of the problems faced by the warehousing industry in the country. The logistics policy of the government of India has clearly defined the goals for the industry. WDRA is gradually working towards bringing uniformity and digitalization in the Indian warehousing industry.”
Mr Sachin Bhanushali, Advisor, FICCI Logistics Committee & Former CEO Gateway Distriparks Ltd said, “The cost of logistics is a huge concern for the Indian industry; however, the reliability of the logistics is an equally big concern. Railways can play an important role in bringing down the logistics costs in the country. It is time to adopt transformative approach to do the logistics and warehousing business in the country”, he added.
"Logistics managers are concerned about the reliability in the delivery of the raw materials and goods. Although GST has practically removed the interstate borders in terms of taxation, some more changes are required on the regulatory side and the methodology in which the industry operates,” he added.
During the event, FICCI-Grant Thornton Knowledge Report titled Evolving Landscape of Warehousing and Logistics in India: A road to becoming third-largest economy by 2027 was released. The report assesses various logistics and warehousing market trends and key policies that are helping to define the industry and the developments anticipated in the forthcoming period.
The event consisted of two technical sessions on Building Warehouses for the Future: Key Developments & Opportunities and Creating a Robust & Resilient Supply Chain Ecosystem: Achieving Operational Excellence. The panellist in the sessions discussed opportunities, challenges and key developments in the logistics and warehousing sectors in the country.
FICCI- Grant Thornton report – ‘Evolving Landscape of Warehousing and Logistics in India: A road to becoming third-largest economy by 2027’, was released during the event.