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New Delhi : In a historic event for the infrastructure landscape of the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch PM GatiShakti – National Master Plan for multi-modal connectivity, on October 13, 2021, at 11 am at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.
Infrastructure creation in India had suffered for decades from multiple issues. There was lack of coordination between different Departments, for example, once a road was constructed, other agencies dug up the constructed road again for activities like laying of underground cables, gas pipelines etc. This not only caused great inconvenience but was also a wasteful expenditure. To address this, efforts were put in place to increase coordination so that all cables, pipelines etc. could be laid simultaneously. Steps have also been taken to address other issues like time-taking approval process, multiplicity of regulatory clearances etc. In the last seven years, the Government has ensured unprecedented focus on infrastructure through a holistic outlook, according to a PIB release.
PM GatiShakti will address the past issues through institutionalising holistic planning for stakeholders for major infrastructure projects. Instead of planning and designing separately in silos, the projects will be designed and executed with a common vision. It will incorporate the infrastructure schemes of various Ministries and State Governments like Bharatmala, Sagarmala, inland waterways, dry/land ports, UDAN etc. Economic Zones like textile clusters, pharmaceutical clusters, defence corridors, electronic parks, industrial corridors, fishing clusters, agri zones will be covered to improve connectivity and make Indian businesses more competitive. It will also leverage technology extensively including spatial planning tools with ISRO imagery developed by BiSAG-N (Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geoinformatics).
PM GatiShakti is based on six pillars:
1. Comprehensiveness: It will include all the existing and planned initiatives of various Ministries and Departments with one centralised portal. Each and every Department will now have visibility of each other’s activities providing critical data while planning & execution of projects in a comprehensive manner.
2. Prioritisation: Through this, different Departments will be able to prioritise their projects through cross–sectoral interactions.
3. Optimisation: The National Master Plan will assist different ministries in planning for projects after identification of critical gaps. For the transportation of the goods from one place to another, the plan will help in selecting the most optimum route in terms of time and cost.
4. Synchronisation: Individual Ministries and Departments often work in silos. There is lack of coordination in planning and implementation of the project resulting in delays. PM GatiShakti will help in synchronising the activities of each department, as well as of different layers of governance, in a holistic manner by ensuring coordination of work between them.
5. Analytical: The plan will provide the entire data at one place with GIS based spatial planning and analytical tools having 200+ layers, enabling better visibility to the executing agency.
6. Dynamic: All Ministries and Departments will now be able to visualise, review and monitor the progress of cross-sectoral projects, through the GIS platform, as the satellite imagery will give on-ground progress periodically and progress of the projects will be updated on a regular basis on the portal. It will help in identifying the vital interventions for enhancing and updating the master plan.
PM GatiShakti is the result of Prime Minister’s constant endeavour to build Next Generation Infrastructure which improves Ease of Living as well as Ease of Doing Business.
PM GatiShakti will provide the public and business community information regarding the upcoming connectivity projects, other business hubs, industrial areas and surrounding environment. This will enable the investors to plan their businesses at suitable locations leading to enhanced synergies. It will create multiple employment opportunities and give a boost to the economy. It will improve the global competitiveness of local products by cutting down the logistics costs and improving the supply chains, and also ensure proper linkages for local industry and consumers.
The Prime Minister will also inaugurate the New Exhibition Complex (Exhibition Halls 2 to 5) at Pragati Maidan during the event. India Trade Promotion Organisation’s flagship event, India International Trade Fair (IITF) 2021 will also be held from November 14-27, 2021, at these new exhibition halls.