National Logistics Policy will be a game changer, say industry players

• Experts and industry players have welcomed the long-awaited National Logistics Policy, calling it transformational and a ‘game changer’.
• The NLP includes a new single-window platform for accessing all transport services digitally to an online portal to address grievances.
• With the NLP, the immediate aim of the government is to reduce the cost of logistics and bring it in line with global standards.

The Indian government finally announced the much-awaited National Logistics Policy, and that has the industry players excited. The primary aim of the new policy is to bring down the cost of logistics in line with global standards.

The NLP, as it is being called, aims to standardize several aspects of logistics, including things like the Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP), Ease of Logistics Services (E-Logs) platform, and more.

Here are some of the goals of the new National Logistics Policy:

1. Bring down logistics costs from the current 14% of the Indian GDP to 10% by the end of 2022. In countries like Singapore, US, and South Korea, this stands at 8%.
2. Improve Logistics Performance Index and catapult India to the top 25 countries.
3. Minimize logistical issues via standardization of the warehousing sector and reduce transportation stress on roadways by offloading some of it to other modes of transport.
4. Enhance workforce skills via Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya.
5. Address issues of the logistics industry via unified service platforms like ULIP and E-Logs.

Industry players have welcomed NLP, saying that this will be a “game changer”.

“Push towards seamless multimodal transportation and modern connectivity will be a game changer as it will shift the transportation stress from just road to other modes as well,” said Vineet Agarwal, MD of Transport Corporation of India.

Rajneesh Kumar, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Flipkart Group, said, "The National Logistics Policy is a welcome move and this along with PM Gati Shakti plan will help build a more resilient logistics ecosystem in the country. Along with improving efficiency across the value chain, it will also result in a considerable reduction in logistics costs from their present level, thereby benefiting the end customer with lower costs."

Sunil Nair, CEO of Snowman Logistics said that the much-awaited National Logistics Policy covered most of his expectations. “The integration of 30 systems from seven different departments is one of the most liked solutions,” said.

Ease of access to information will also enable better business opportunities, said Zaiba Sarang, co-founder of iThink Logistics.

“NLP gives the smallest person in the ecosystem access to information that was available to key stakeholders only. 85% own less than 10 trucks and their empty trucks can pick up the goods from the best place which will yield them higher returns,” she said.

The government’s aim to reduce dependence on just one mode of transport is important, said Pervinder Singh Chawla, co-founder of Onmove.

“NLP attempts to have strong infrastructure (the heart of logistics) and tech infrastructure to support a fast-growing manufacturing economy. NLP has its focus on tactical multimodal implementation (the tail of cheetah) that is flexible, cost efficient and agile,” he said.

NLP could be the UPI of logistics, say analysts

One of the common issues plaguing the Indian economy has been bureaucracy and the red tape. The NLP also tries to address this to an extent with ULIP, which is a single window interface that integrates all digital services for the transport sector at a single place.

“Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP) will bring all digital services related to the transportation sector into a single portal. The platform aims at breaking individual silos, promoting integration among various ministries/departments and creating a single window thereby bringing in transparency and efficiency,” said a report by JM Financial.

“The aim is to create a UPI-like structure in which every single transaction of the logistic department can be authenticated,” the report added further, explaining how ULIP could transform the logistics landscape.

It remains to be seen if ULIP can do for logistics what UPI has done for sending and receiving money.

SEE ALSO:

Anil Agarwal – how a Bihar boy who knew only ‘yes’ and ‘no’ went onto list the first Indian company on London Stock Exchange

For every ₹100 pulled out by foreign investors from the Indian equity markets, domestic investors have ploughed back ₹89 this year

Time to buy banks? Morgan Stanley says yes as banks are entering 2nd leg of earnings upgrades