India Can Become Logistics Hub of the Region and Beyond: WB

In 2023, India ranked 38 out of the 139 nations in the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index (LPI), up six places from the previous rankings in 2018. India has now set the ambitious goal of ranking among the world’s top 25 nations by 2030, bringing logistics costs down to the equivalent of less than 10 per cent of the GDP.

Among the various initiatives, The PM Gati Shakti initiative breaks down the siloed approach to the planning and execution of multimodal infrastructure projects by integrating data from 16 ministries and departments onto a single Geographic Information System-based platform.

The platform can be overlaid with information on trade flows across the country. This will enable planners to mine the plethora of data available from the Goods and Services Tax Network and E-Way bills to see where infrastructure needs to be improved. Further, the multimodal logistics parks planned with connectivity to railway corridors can serve as warehouses and data centres, attracting private sector service providers and investors, while giving manufacturers last-mile connectivity.

The country’s youth also have to be equipped with the skills needed by the dynamic industry. Women can benefit from new jobs, especially in softer skills such as packaging, sorting, and warehouse management. The Logistics Sector Skill Council is training workers in newer technologies to help them become full-fledged logistics professionals.

The World Bank has been supporting India through a variety of rail, road, and inland waterway projects. It is also helping the country increase digitisation and improve trade services, among other measures, and supporting the development of skills for this rapidly evolving industry.

India’s push to improve its logistics performance will not only improve its trade competitiveness, but will also increase jobs, and enable the country to emerge as a logistics hub for the region and beyond, the World Bank said.