NEW DELHI: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has emphasized the importance of effectively utilizing the PM GatiShakti initiative in conjunction with the area development approach to extend its benefits beyond the infrastructure sector. During a meeting to review the progress of PM GatiShakti, Goyal urged ministries and departments to fully utilize the integrated platform to accelerate India's infrastructure and economic growth.

Goyal highlighted the potential benefits of the initiative in the agriculture sector, suggesting the establishment of common facilities on farmlands through cooperatives and start-ups. This can be achieved by leveraging the integrated framework of PM GatiShakti and utilizing data from the National Master Plan (NMP).

In addition, the minister stressed the applicability of the area development approach under PM GatiShakti for engaging with aspirational districts identified by NITI Aayog. Representatives from various ministries, including DPIIT, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Railways, Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Civil Aviation, Power, Petroleum and Natural Gas, Telecommunication, New and Renewable Energy, BISAG-N, and NICDC, participated in the meeting.

Sumita Dawra, Special Secretary of DPIIT, presented the progress made in PM GatiShakti, focusing on improving the data quality of the National Master Plan, standardizing data layers, and establishing a Quality Improvement Plan (QIP) mechanism for enhanced planning. The inclusion of five new ministries onto PM GatiShakti is proposed to encourage the usage of the National Master Plan for social sector planning, in addition to the existing fourteen social sector departments/ministries. This expansion aims to boost socioeconomic development across the country.

DPIIT is actively working on enhancing both domestic and EXIM logistics. An EXIM Logistics Group has been formed in collaboration with other departments and ministries to formulate an action plan for improving India's performance on each parameter of the Logistics Performance Index (LPI) as per the World Bank report. Efforts are also underway to enable end-to-end multi-modal tracking of cargo by integrating the Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP) with GSTN data. Capacity-building programs for state-level officials are planned to ensure widespread understanding and adoption of the initiative through training modules on PM GatiShakti at Central Training Institutes.

The PM GatiShakti National Master Plan (NMP) was launched in October 2021 with a vision to position infrastructure as a key driver of economic growth.

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