SME Times News Bureau | 01 Feb, 2020
Union
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said that the soon to be
released National Logistics Policy will make MSMEs more competitive.
She
said a National Logistics Policy will be released soon and it will clarify the
roles of the Union Government, State Governments and key regulators.
Presenting
the Union Budget 2020-21 in Parliament, she said the policy will create a
single window e-logistics market and focus on generation of employment, skills
and make MSMEs competitive.
India’s
logistics sector is highly defragmented and the aim is to reduce the logistics
cost from the present 14% of GDP to less than 10% by 2022.
India’s
logistics sector is very complex with more than 20 government agencies, 40
PGAs, 37 export promotion councils, 500 certifications, 10000 commodities, 160
billion market size. It also involves 12 million employment base, 200 shipping
agencies, 36 logistics services, 129 ICDs, 168 CFSs, 50 IT ecosystems and banks
& insurance agencies. Further, 81 authorities and 500 certificates are required
for EXIM.
The
Indian logistics sector provides livelihood to more than 22 million people and
improving the sector will facilitate 10 % decrease in indirect logistics cost
leading to the growth of 5 to 8% in exports.
Further,
it is estimated that the worth of Indian logistics market will be around USD
215 billion in next two years compared to about USD 160 billion at present.
The
National Logistics Policy formulated by the Commerce and Industry Ministry will
improve India’s trade competitiveness, create more jobs, improve India’s
performance in global rankings and pave the way for India to become a logistics
hub.