Union Budget 2022-23 puts PM GatiShakti multimodal plan in limelight

February 1, 2022: Union minister for finance & corporate affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman started off the union budget 2022-23 speech in parliament today by presenting PM GatiShakti national multimodal masterplan as a transformative approach for economic growth and sustainable development, driven by seven engines, namely, roads, railways, airports, ports, mass transport, waterways, and logistics infrastructure.

Thus she brought logistics as the focus of her budget speech as well the government's approach to India's economic development.

"The engines are supported by the complementary roles of energy transmission, IT communication, bulk water & sewerage, and social infrastructure. The approach is powered by clean energy and Sabka Prayas – the efforts of the central government, the state governments, and the private sector together – leading to huge job and entrepreneurial opportunities for all, especially the youth," she said.

The finance minister said the scope of PM GatiShakti national master plan will encompass the seven engines for economic transformation, seamless multimodal connectivity and logistics efficiency. It will also include the infrastructure developed by the state governments as per the GatiShakti master plan. The focus will be on planning, financing including through innovative ways, use of technology, and speedier implementation.

Sitharaman said the projects pertaining to these 7 engines in the National Infrastructure Pipeline will be aligned with the PM GatiShakti framework. The touchstone of the master plan will be world-class modern infrastructure and logistics synergy among different modes of movement – both of people and goods – and the location of projects. She said this will help raise productivity and accelerate economic growth and development.

Road
The finance minister said PM GatiShakti Master Plan for expressways will be formulated in 2022-23 to facilitate faster movement of people and goods. The National Highways network will be expanded by 25,000 km in 2022-23. She said ₹20,000 crore will be mobilized through innovative ways of financing to complement the public resources.

Multimodal movement of goods
Sitharaman said the data exchange among all mode operators will be brought on Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP), designed for Application Programming Interface (API). This will provide for efficient movement of goods through different modes, reducing logistics cost and time, assisting just-in-time inventory management, and in eliminating tedious documentation. Most importantly, this will provide real time information to all stakeholders, and improve international competitiveness.
Contracts for implementation of Multimodal Logistics Parks at four locations through PPP mode will be awarded in 2022-23.

Railways
The finance minister said railways will develop new products and efficient logistics services for small farmers and Small and Medium Enterprises, besides taking the lead in the integration of postal and railways networks to provide seamless solutions for the movement of parcels.

She said the 'One Station-One Product' concept will be popularized to help local businesses & supply chains.
She said one hundred PM GatiShakti cargo terminals for multimodal logistics facilities will be developed during the next three years.

Infrastructure projects
Finance Minister said with technical support from the Capacity Building Commission, central ministries, state governments, and their infra-agencies will have their skills upgraded. This will ramp up capacity in planning, design, financing, and implementation management of the PM GatiShakti infrastructure projects.

For 2022-23, the finance Minister proposed allocation of ₹1 lakh crore to assist the states in catalysing overall investments in the economy. These fifty-year interest-free loans are over and above the normal borrowings allowed to the states.