Latest News | DPIIT Aims to Get a Clear Picture of India's Logistics Cost in About 4 Months: Official

New Delhi, Apr 17 (PTI) The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is aiming to get a clear picture of the country's logistics costs in the next four months, a senior government official said on Monday.

At present, the government is going by certain estimates, which suggest that India's logistics cost stands at about 13-14 per cent of the country's GDP (gross domestic product).

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The department has conducted a workshop last month on logistics cost framework, and a task force has been set up to formulate a framework to determine the cost in the country.

"The task force will give its report in two months' time...in about four months, we should have an estimate, that's what we are aiming for," Special Secretary in the DPIIT Sumita Dawra told reporters here.

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She said that in two months, they would get the framework and it would take another two months for the calculations.

"We have recognised the fact that we need more clarity on what are the components that will go into the logistics costs calculation. Not many countries have calculated their logistics costs. So, we are trying to bring objectivity to the calculation rather than a perception-based approach," she said.

She added that, at present, there are variations in estimates within the country as well.

Citing examples, Dawra said that NCAER has given around 8 per cent, and another estimate states 13-14 per cent.

"So, we are hoping that in two months' time, the task force will give us the components which go into the logistics costs calculation, and then we will be able to take a view on how we go ahead with respect to improving those parameters and calculating the actual cost," she said.

The task force members include representatives from Niti Aayog, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI), the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), academic experts and other stakeholders.

The government has rolled out a national logistics policy and PM Gati Shakti initiative to boost the competitiveness of the industry and cut logistics costs.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)