Multi-Modal Logistics Parks (MMLPs) is a key policy initiative of the Government of India, led by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), to develop Multi-Modal Logistics Parks in huband- spoke model to improve the country’s freight & logistics sector.
35 multi-modal logistics parks will come up in the country under the Bharatmala project. The facilities envisaged in this MMLP are warehouses, cold storage, inter-modal transfers, handling facilities for container terminals, and bulk/break-bulk cargo terminals, among others. These Multi-Modal Logistics Parks (MMLPs) will help lower overall freight costs and time, cutting warehousing costs, reducing vehicular pollution and congestion, improving the tracking and traceability of consignments through infrastructural, procedural, and information technology interventions.
Among 35 strategic locations identified for the development of MMLPs across India by MoRTH, Nagpur is one of them. Nagpur, being centrally located in the country and well-connected through road and rail, provides location advantages to establish industries, warehouses and associated facilities to link to ports. The proposed project site to develop MMLP Nagpur is located at Sindhi in the Wardha district of Maharashtra and the total area of the project site is 345.54 acres with an estimated project cost of Rs 780 crore. Within the site, the MMLP is to be developed in an area of 230 acres, while the balance land might be used for industrial development based on demand. The land acquisition for the dry port has been already completed by JNPT (Jawaharlal Nehru Port/Nhava Sheva port), with an MoU (memorandum of understanding) for the MMLP at Sindhi, having been signed between JNPT and the NHLML (National Highways Logistics Management Ltd), a special purpose division of the NHAI. MMLP Nagpur at Sindhi will in turn make Nagpur and Wardha, the logistics capital of India. It will also boost opportunities for export and import for businesses in the region.
The Bharatmala project proposes to have four MMPLs in Maharashtra, including Jalna, Nasik, Solapur and Sangli. Similarly, an MoU has been signed for starting another MMLP in Chennai. MoRTH Joint Secretary (Logistics) Suman Prasad Singh said that out of around 35 MMLPs, work on one in the northeastern region has already been completed.
Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has stated, “These MMLPs will give a big boost to our economy and exports.”
The statement also said around 10 million tonnes of cargo is estimated to be handled at the MMLP in the horizon year of 2051.
The ministry has in its pipeline a plan for an Expressway between Nagpur and Hyderabad as well. Keeping pace with India’s economic growth is the expansion of the country’s logistics sector. The government expects freight movement in the country to continue its growth trajectory.