Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari announced on Thursday that India’s logistics costs will drop to single digits within the next two years. Speaking at an event hosted by NITI Aayog, Gadkari mentioned that the ministry is developing numerous highways and expressways, which will significantly lower the country’s logistics expenses. “In two years, we aim to reduce our logistics cost to 9%,” he stated.
According to preliminary estimates from the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), India’s logistics costs were between 7.8% and 8.9% of GDP during the fiscal year 2021-22.
Gadkari also highlighted India’s vast potential to export alternative fuels and biofuels, noting that even low-quality coal can be used to produce methanol. He emphasized that India is making notable progress in the biofuel sector, particularly in methanol production. Additionally, Gadkari expressed his ambition to make the Indian automobile industry the world’s leader.
Last year, India had overtaken Japan to become the third-largest automobile market in the world, only behind the US and China, he said. The size of India’s automobile industry rose from INR 7.5 lakh crore in 2014 to INR 18 lakh crore in 2024 and this industry is creating a maximum number of jobs, Gadkari added.
Gadkari highlighted that materials like recycled tyre powder and plastic are being utilised in road construction, which helps in the reduction of bitumen import. He also emphasised how the initiative of using crop waste is helping to increase the incomes of farmers across the country. Gadkari spoke about the stubble-burning problem in Punjab and Haryana.
He said that right now, “we can process one-fifth of the Parali, but with better planning, we can reduce the seasonal air pollution from stubble-burning by using parali as raw material for alternative fuels.” The minister said that India needs to move ahead with a policy which is cost-effective, indigenous, import substitute and employment-generating to address the major issues of rising pollution and fossil fuel imports.
, India's logistics costs were between 7.8% and 8.9% of GDP during the fiscal year 2021-22.){kind=link}