To support the Center’s reforms aimed at bolstering and modernising logistics infrastructure, increasing efficiency, and reducing costs in the logistics sector, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has authorised a $250 million policy-based loan.
The government’s efforts to develop a thorough institutional framework at the national, state and local levels are supported by the loan, according to a statement from the ADB. “The loan will finance the first sub-program of the Strengthening Multimodal and Integrated Logistics Ecosystem Program,” the statement read.
According to the statement, this will rationalise India’s high logistics costs and lower greenhouse gas emissions.
The initiative will strengthen supply chains by streamlining domestic and international trade logistics, enhancing business processes with integrated digital platforms, updating warehouses, and encouraging private investment in the industry.
The Prime Minister Gati Shakti-National Master Plan and India’s recently approved National Logistics Policy offer revolutionary institutional and regulatory frameworks for the comprehensive development of the nation’s logistics ecosystem, laying the groundwork for the creation of a modern and effective logistics sector.
The sub-program encourages reforms that lessen the burdensome procedures that firms must go through to get permission for cargo clearance and the development of digital platforms that connect rules, procedures, and logistics data to facilitate multimodal logistics. The program encourages the facilitation of cargo transit through coastal shipping and interior waterways to develop multimodal transportation.
The program additionally supports efforts by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to establish warehousing standards, which would promote operational effectiveness and private sector investment.
