Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Sh. Piyush Goyal welcomes the announcement, says it will generate employment and have multiplier effect on economic growth

PM GatiShakti provides big boost to planning multimodal connectivity expanding economic, social, digital infrastructure

The Interim Budget for 2024-25 announcement for implementation of three Economic Railway Corridor identified under the PM GatiShakti for enabling multi-modal connectivity, including (i) energy, mineral, and cement corridors, (ii) port connectivity corridors, and (iii) high traffic density corridors, is a big push towards logistics efficiency and reduction of logistics cost related to rail movement. It will decongest high density rail routes and facilitate modal shift from road to rail and to coastal shipping, thereby reducing carbon footprint in logistics.

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal welcomed the announcement as investment in infrastructure development will generate employment opportunities and have multiplier effect on the economic growth of the country. He said that the focus of the Government under the leadership of Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has been on infrastructure as it has direct impact on beneficiaries across sectors.

Strong opportunities for continued usage of PM GatiShakti NMP for planning multimodal connectivity emerge under many of the Budget 2024 announcements, such as the following:

•  Expansion of existing airports, and development of new airports;
• India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, a strategic and economic game changer for India;
• Comprehensive development of iconic tourist centers by enhancing port connectivity, tourism infrastructure, and amenities on Indian Islands;
• Expansion of Metro Rail and NaMo Bharat in large cities focusing on transit-oriented development and promoting ease of living;
• Expediting the setting up of more medical colleges by utilizing the existing hospital infrastructure under various departments and upgradation of Anganwadi centres under “Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0” for improved nutrition delivery, and early childhood care.

Development of world-class modern infrastructure is paramount as it is a critical growth engine of India, and a primary requirement to become a part of the global supply chains. In this regard, the use of new age technologies and data-based mechanisms including (i) PM GatiShakti (PMGS) National Master Plan (GIS-data-based planning platform, use of AI, advanced tools, etc.), (ii) Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP) offering ease of logistics, and (iii) RFID-technology, Big Data Analytics, and IOT based Logistics Data Bank (LDB), will continue to enable predictive planning and objective, data-based decision-making for efficient logistics and integrated infrastructure development.

Since its launch, PM GatiShakti has been utilized in the planning of physical infrastructure and the Area Approach has been integrated for comprehensive planning of both economic and social sector assets (for example, gap analyzer tool for identifying infrastructure gaps, site suitability tool for identifying suitable site location for schools, Anganwadi centres, agriculture market yards, etc.). The use of PMGS NMP is also significantly de-risking infrastructure investments and encouraging FDI inflows through facilitation of logistics efficiency.

With the announcements pertaining to upgrading existing infrastructure, besides building new infrastructure, made in Budget 2024, the role of technology such as PMGS continues to be critical, offering a GIS-data-based decision support system for integrated planning in the logistics and infrastructure sector, and for improving Ease of Living as well as Ease of Doing Business.

Multimodal connectivity through PM GatiShakti enables new rail corridors to reduce logistics costs and promote modal shift. Implementation of three Economic Railway Corridors under PM GatiShakti is proposed to enable multimodal connectivity for energy, mineral and cement movements, port access, and high-traffic density routes, improving logistics efficiency by decongesting rail routes, facilitating modal shift from road to rail and coastal shipping, and reducing carbon footprint. PM GatiShakti's National Master Plan and digital tools-GIS-based platforms, AI, ULIP, RFID, and an IoT Logistics Data Bank-are identified as the decision-support mechanisms that enable integrated planning, de-risk infrastructure investment, and encourage foreign investment.