The National Logistics Policy, 2022

An efficient transport and trade logistical system is a prerequisite for sustained economic development for any country of the world. It is especially important for an emerging economy like India, which has one of the highest logistics costs of doing business in the world (De 2009). The prime reasons for high transactional cost in India’s trade are poor logistical infrastructure, poor logistics management practices, and lower use of technology in the logistical operations. The high cost of doing business adversely affects India’s opportunities in global markets for tapping the emerging avenues of business, economic growth, and development. Even foreign investors have time and again complained about the availability of inefficient physical and virtual infrastructure in India as a major reason for not setting up their manufacturing operations here (Kilgore et al 2007).

For India to grow sustainably and transform its socio-economic landscape, seamless con­nec­tivity on a real-time basis is a must for all areas of economic activities, that is, manufacturing, trading, and services. In such a scenario, gaining logistical effi­ciency as well as providing world-class trade infrastructure to India’s trade community are essential. Improvements in logistical infrastructure will facilitate both internal and external trade and catalytically improve the environment for sustained socio-economic development and employment generation (Singh 2015). An efficient logistics system ess­entially plays an important role in promoting the development of the backward regions, thus improving connectivity with far-flung areas in the country’s hinterland and resultantly integrating them into the mainstream economy. The improvements in logistics infrastructure open up opportunities for greater trade and investments and consequently lead to increased industrialisation. An efficient transport network, including improvements in virtual as well as physical infrastructure and overall efficiency in the logistical system of the country, bec­omes all the more important to increase productivity and enhance the competitiveness of the economy in the world market (Qureshi et al 2013). India has been lagging in logistics infrastructure which is well-reflected in various international and national studies (Figure 1, p 14).