The government has decided to revisit the Draft National Logistics Policy in order to include emergencies like COVID-19 pandemic in the policy. Pawan Kumar Agarwal, Special Secretary – Logistics, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India underlines eight mantras that can transform the country’s logistics sector.
CT Bureau
The government is revisiting the finalised draft of National Logistics Policy in order to include norms on disaster management to govern emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic and other developments,” reveals Agarwal. He adds, “This will give an opportunity to further fine-tune the policy and discuss issues that have not been addressed in the previous draft.”
He requested the industry to share their recommendations and bring new ideas in formulating the policy to make India’s supply chain more resilient and responsive to disasters and emergencies. Stressing on the integrated development of logistics sector so that different players can be brought on the same platform, the Special Secretary said that there is a need to develop national logistics that is fully integrated with global logistics ecosystem. The focus is on connecting the local supply chain with global logistics.
Agarwal, while underlining the eight mantras for transforming India’s logistics sector, said that there is need for standardisation, improving quality and promoting excellence in the sector. He highlighted the importance of digitisation that has been further underscored by COVID-19 pandemic and the need for skilling human resources, improving quality of work and professionalism in the sector. The emphasis is on making the overall logistics sector more innovative, resilient, and sustainable. He further added that focus is on green logistics as it will bring in medium and long-term gains for the sector. He expressed these views in a webinar organised by FICCI