New Delhi: In a written reply in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Som Parkash, highlighted the significance of the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan. This plan encompasses a comprehensive database detailing trunk and utility infrastructure, ongoing and upcoming projects managed by various Infrastructure and Economic Ministries/Departments of both the Central Government and States/UTs.
He emphasized that this data integrates with the GIS-enabled PM Gati Shakti platform, streamlining integrated planning, design, and monitoring of the Next Generation infrastructure projects on a unified portal. The Prime Minister launched the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan (NMP) on October 13, 2021, aimed at providing multimodal connectivity infrastructure to diverse economic zones.
Parkash elucidated, “Economic Zones such as textile clusters, pharmaceutical clusters, defense corridors, electronic parks, industrial corridors, fishing clusters, agri-zones, etc., are being mapped to plan integrated infrastructure, enhancing the cost-competitiveness of Indian businesses. This strategic move is expected to bolster economic growth, attract foreign investments, visualize connectivity to de-risk investments, and bolster the country’s global competitiveness in export markets.”
He highlighted the role of the National Logistics Policy, 2022, and its Comprehensive Logistics Action Plan (CLAP) in addressing efficiency in services, digital systems, regulatory frameworks, and human resources, complementing the integrated infrastructure development under the PM Gati Shakti NMP. Together, these policies create a data-driven decision support mechanism for an efficient logistics ecosystem, aiming to reduce logistics costs and enhance efficiency in the country.
Parkash underlined PM Gati Shakti as a Whole-of-Government approach, fostering integrated planning of multimodal infrastructure through collaborative efforts among concerned Ministries. He noted that the Logistics Division of DPIIT has conducted 62 Network Planning Group (NPG) meetings, assessing area-based socio-economic development in infrastructure projects.
“The feedback from various Ministries has been positive; for example, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways utilizes PM Gati Shakti for ground surveys, land records, and highway alignments, resulting in saving time and costs in project planning. Similarly, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas uses NMP’s electronic Detail Route Survey (eDRS) to generate reports more efficiently. Additionally, the Ministry of Railways completed the Final Location Survey (FLS) in FY2021-22 at a significantly faster rate compared to FY2020-21,” he added.
“Moreover, States/UTs have adopted the PM Gati Shakti institutional mechanism, organizing NPG meetings at their level to evaluate last and first-mile connectivity gaps, ensuring seamless movement of people, goods, and services,” concluded the minister.