Union Minister Nitin Gadkari stresses on need to reduce logistics costs to boost development of industry in Maharashtra

Ethanol is a much better alternative to petrol and diesel; will help control pollution to a large extent: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari

Government support has helped MSMEs and protected jobs of more than 5 crore people: MoS, Dr. Bhagwat Karad

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Shri Nitin Gadkari has stressed on the need to reduce logistics costs to boost development of industry in Maharashtra. Speaking at a conference on "Development of Maharashtra from a New Budgetary Perspective" organized by Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (MACCIA) in Mumbai today, February 5, 2022, the Minister said: “Logistics costs are 12 percent in the US, 12 percent in European countries and 8 to 10 percent in China whereas in India, it is around 14 to 16 percent. We need to build appropriate infrastructure to reduce logistics costs, a major issue faced by Indian industry”.

Notably, the Union Budget 2022-23, presented by the Union Finance Minister in Parliament earlier this week, lays significant focus on bringing down logistics costs as part of the ambitious PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan. The Plan aims to do this by enabling development of cargo terminals, setting up Multi Modal Logistics Parks and increasing coverage of National Highways.

The Transport Minister informed that the government has planned to construct logistics parks worth Rs. 2 lakh crores across the country, and that Maharashtra also should reap the benefit from this. “The country now has the facility to land aircraft on 20 highways. Dry ports have begun functioning in Wardha district and new dry ports will be started in Solapur, Sangli and Nashik. These projects include storage, pre-cooling plants and production processing facilities. Today, oranges, yarn and fabric can be transported directly to Haldia from Nagpur and further to Bangladesh.”

The Union Minister also pitched for Ethanol as a better alternative to petrol and diesel. “Ethanol is ten times better a fuel than petrol or diesel, and is cheaper and environment-friendly. There are three ethanol pumps already operating in Pune. Greater use of ethanol as a fuel will help us in controlling pollution to a large extent.”

The Minister added that ethanol production can create employment opportunities for about 50 lakh youth in the state of Maharashtra. The country needs 4.5 trillion litres of ethanol. Sugarcane farmers in Maharashtra can benefit from ethanol production and consequently transform the face of rural Maharashtra.

Addressing the gathering, Union Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Bhagwat Karad said that the Government of India has provided Rs 2.5 lakh crore to MSMEs in order to help the industry sail through the COVID-19 pandemic. The government provided assistance to more than 95 lakh firms, thereby protecting jobs of more than 5 crore people.

The Minister said that Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme has been announced for 14 sectors and that the PLI scheme has received tremendous response. The government has also decided to launch 75 digital banks for promotion of international trade, he added.

On the occasion, Union Minister Shri Gadkari handed over the charge of the Chamber to the newly elected President of MCCIA, Shri Lalit Gandhi and his team.

A Memorandum and Understanding was signed between MACCIA and Convergence Energy Services Limited, a subsidiary of Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL). A synopsis of the MACCIA Excellence Centre was also released at the event.