03 Jan 2023 PM Gati Shakti

PM Gati Shakti

This article covers “Daily current events “and the topic is about the ‘PM Gati Shakti scheme’ which is in news, it covers “Government policies and interventions ” In GS-2 and GS-3 following content have relevance for UPSC. 

For prelims: Government policies and interventions 

For mains: GS-2, GS -3, and Mobilization of resources

Why in news:

PM GatiShakti is reviewed by the union’s minister of commerce and industry along with 8 infrastructural Ministries.

About PM-Gati Shakti Scheme

• Aim: To ensure that infrastructure projects are planned and executed in an integrated manner during the next four years, with a focus on accelerating ground-level work, cutting costs, and generating jobs.
• The Rs 110 lakh crore National Infrastructure Pipeline, which was introduced in 2019, would be absorbed by the Gati Shakti plan.
• The plan aims to enhance trade by lowering turnaround times at ports and expanding cargo handling capacity in addition to reducing logistics expenses.
• Eleven industrial corridors and two new defence corridors, one in Tamil Nadu and the other in Uttar Pradesh, are also on the agenda. Another goal is to provide 4G access throughout all settlements. The gas pipeline network will be expanded by 17,000 km.
• The building of more than 200 new airports, heliports, and water aerodromes would assist the government reach its lofty goals for 2024–2025, which include extending the length of the national highway network to 2 lakh km.
• Integrated Approach: It aims to bring 16 Ministries with ties to infrastructure together.
• This will assist in resolving persistent challenges including fragmented planning, a lack of standardisation, difficulties obtaining approvals, and the timely creation and utilisation of infrastructure capacities.
• Gati Shakti Digital Platform: It entails the development of a unified umbrella platform that would enable effective real-time coordination between various ministries and departments to plan and carry out infrastructure projects.
• Expected Results:
  • The plan will assist in mapping both current and future connection efforts.
  • Additionally, there will be a great deal more clarity on the connections between the nation’s many regions and industrial clusters, especially in terms of last mile connectivity.
  • Make in India will be considerably supported, and various means of transportation will be merged, by a comprehensive and integrated transport connectivity strategy.
  • It will assist India in becoming the world’s commercial hub.
• Development of an Integrated Infrastructure is Required:
  • Due to the lack of coordination and sophisticated information sharing caused by departments thinking and working in silos, there is a significant gap between macro planning and micro implementation.
  • A study found that India’s logistics costs are higher than those in wealthy nations, at roughly 13% of GDP.
  • The competitiveness of India’s exports is significantly lowered as a result of these high logistics costs.
  • It is well acknowledged that building high-quality infrastructure for sustainable development is a tried-and-true method that sparks numerous economic activity and generates a significant amount of employment.
  • The programme works together with the National Monetization Pipeline (NMP).
  • The NMP has been made public in order to give potential investors a clear framework for monetisation and a ready list of assets to spark interest in investments.
• Concerns:
  • Low Credit Offtake: Despite the government’s “strong” reforms of the banking industry and the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Codes about Rs. 2.4 lakh crore in recoveries from bad loans, there are concerns about the trends of reducing credit offtake.
  • Banks extend credit to businesses in order to assist them in obtaining finance for upcoming initiatives through the assurance of future earnings and evidence of an existing market.
  • Absence of Demand There is a shortage of investor demand and private demand in the post-Covid-19 context.
  • Structure Issues: In comparison to other countries, the pace of project implementation is extremely slow because of problems with land acquisition and litigation.
  • It is exceedingly challenging to obtain permissions for infrastructure projects in terms of access to land and environmental clearances. Additionally, pending legal disputes cause delays.

Way Ahead

• PM A positive development is Gati Shakti. It must, however, address structural and macroeconomic stability issues that result from increased public spending.
• This endeavour must therefore be supported by a solid and predictable institutional and regulatory environment.

Source:

• PIB
• India.gov.in

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