The Logistics Division of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry has unveiled plans for the ‘Freight Smart Cities’ on Friday, July 2.
About Freight Smart Cities
- To begin with, 10 cities will be developed as Freight Smart cities. Further, an institutional mechanism for the same involving the Government, private stakeholders like logistics services providers, users and citizens will be set up.
- Measures have been divided into four categories- vehicle use optimization, infrastructure development, demand and land use planning, and technology adoption.
- The Freight Smart Cities plan will not only improve the urban freight system but also make it efficient and create opportunities by reducing logistics costs.
- On the Freight smart city initiatives, the Logistics Division is working closely with GIZ (Germany) under Indo-German Development Cooperation, Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) and RMI India.
Why Freight Smart Cities?
- Freight, in simple language, means goods or cargo. These may be carried or transported by a ship, train, truck, or airplane.
- Indian cities are driving the economic activity of the nation, contributing more than 63% of the national GDP. This prompted the need for a first and last-mile freight movement.
- It is expected that 124 million people will be added to cities in this decade in India, thereby adding to an increase in the demand for urban freight by 140%. Further, the e-commerce market is expected to grow to Rs 11 lakh crore by 2022.
- Moreover, the existing urban freight system has certain drawbacks. 10% of India’s freight-related CO2 emissions are due to urban freight. These vehicles impact air quality as they contribute to 23 kilo tonnes of Particulate Matter (PM) emissions and 305 kilo tonnes of Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) emissions annually.
- In addition to this, the present freight system is also responsible for 10% of road fatalities in cities, traffic congestion. Also, final-mile freight movement adds to logistics costs in e-commerce.
- Thus, the new freight plan will not only address the above problems but also meet the increased demands in future, create job opportunities, enhance economic competitiveness, reduce environmental impacts and reduce logistics-related costs.
About Logistics Division
The Logistics Division was set up on 7 July, 2017 as a consequence of the Government of India (GoI) Rules, 1961 in the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry
