Logistics efficiency helped India climb 6 places on World Bank's LPI: Govt

Various initiatives taken by the government to improve its logistics efficiency has helped India climb six places on the recently released World Bank's Logistics Performance Index (LPI) 2023, an official statement said on Wednesday.

India has climbed six places on the LPI, now ranking 38th in the 139 countries index, as a result of significant investments in both soft and hard infrastructure as well as technology.

India was ranked 44th on the index in 2018 and has now climbed to 38th in the 2023 listing. India's performance has drastically improved from 2014, when it was ranked 54th on the LPI.

"India has been taking numerous initiatives since 2015to improve its logistics efficiency. The World Bank has acknowledged India's efforts towards increasing logistics efficiency," the commerce and industry ministry said.

On four out of six LPI indicators, India has seen a remarkable improvement on the back of various initiatives being implemented over the past few years, it said.

"This is a strong indicator of India's global positioning, with this development being powered by our Government's laser focus on reforms for improving logistics infrastructure," it added.

In October 2021, the Centre launched the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan towards a coordinated approach, leveraging technology, for infrastructure planning and development.

Similarly, in September 2022, a National Logistics Policy was announced. It is centred around upgradation and digitisation of logistics infrastructure and services.

Further, other initiatives like Sagarmala which aims to improve connectivity to ports and reduce cargo dwell time, and Bharatmala which focused on improving road connectivity of major corridors, have played a pivotal role in improving India's logistics efficiency, it said.

The LPI index is a perception-based survey conducted across select stakeholders dealing with respective countries.