The government is working on National Logistics Policy, which aims to promote seamless movement of goods across the country, a senior Commerce Ministry official said.
Special Secretary in the logistics division of the ministry, Pawan Agarwal, said the policy will look at several areas such as process re-engineering, digitisation, and focus on multi-modal transport.
It is also looking at exim trade and improving logistics in core sectors such as coal, fertiliser, cement and steel. “We are working on the policy….The policy attempts to look at many of the issues in a wholistic manner,” Agarwal said at CII’s digital summit on exports.
He said there is a huge opportunity for India to do process re-engineering or streamline processes, and logistics is one area where a lot of processes can be digitised which can hugely enhance efficiency.
“The country does not have large number of professional logistic service providers. Lot more attention is required in the area of modern warehouses, where things can be automated for better efficiency in loading and unloading,” he said.
On February 1, the government, in the Budget, had announced that it will soon release the National Logistics Policy. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget speech had stated that the policy will help in clarifying the roles of Centre, states and key regulators. The move assumes significance as high logistics cost impact competitiveness of domestic goods in international market.
