Mumbai: Union minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Saturday said the PM Gati Shakti program has helped the country register a year-on-year growth of Rs 2 lakh crore in merchandise exports in the last fiscal.
Delivering his speech at an event organized by the Indian Merchants Chamber here, Sonowal, who is the Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, also said that the central government is working hard towards improving and modernizing India’s ports and associated infrastructure .
As a result of the transformational initiatives, “India’s merchandise exports to reach USD 447 billion in FY 2022-23, up from USD 422 billion a year ago, registering a whopping growth of over Rs 2 lakh crore in a year” changes,” Sonowal was quoted as saying in a statement.
According to the minister, India has become a $3.5 trillion economy in less than nine years. “This tremendous pace of development is historic and the pace is the result of power,” he said.
Multi-modal connectivity provides integrated and seamless connectivity for movement of people, goods and services from one mode of transport to another. He said that it facilitates last-mile connectivity of infrastructure and also reduces travel time for people.
According to the minister, under the PM Gati Shakti NMP, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has identified 101 projects worth Rs 62,227 crore for implementation by 2025. He informed that out of these 101 projects, 26 projects worth Rs 8,897 crore have been completed, 42 projects worth Rs 15,343 crore are under development, while 33 projects worth Rs 36,638 crore are under implementation.
The minister said that out of the projects under implementation, 14 projects worth Rs 20,537 crore are expected to be completed by December this year.
Of the 101 MoPSW speed power projects, 57 are from major ports, and 44 projects are from states, he said, adding these projects have helped in faster and more efficient movement of cargo, leading to an overall reduction in logistics cost.
According to Sonowal, his ministry has also identified five High Impact Projects (HIPs), which reflect the concept and spirit of the Gati Shakti programme. He also said that the tonnage of Indian ships has increased to 13.7 million gross tons as compared to only 10.3 million gross tons in 2014.
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