Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her fourth budget address on Tuesday talked about PM Gati Shakti Master plan which will be driven by seven engines for growth and transformation. FM announced that the government will expand the National Highway network by 25,000 kms in 2022-23 under the master plan. The Rs 100 lakh-crore project- Gati Shakti plan primarily focuses on developing ‘holistic infrastructure’, with inclusive development, productivity enhancement, energy transmission, climate action and financing of investment.
Finance Minister Sitharaman said the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan is a transformative approach for economic growth and sustainable development and is driven by seven engines roads, railways, airports, ports, mass transport, waterways and logistics infrastructure. All seven engines will pull forward the economy in unison, Sitharaman said while presenting the Budget for 2022-23.
These engines are supported by the complementary roles of energy transmission, IT communication, bulk water and sewerage and social infrastructure. The approach is powered by clean energy and Sabka Prayas (efforts of the central government, the state governments and the private sector together), leading to huge job and entrepreneurial opportunities for all, especially the youth, Sitharaman said in her Budget Speech.
She added that the scope of the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan will encompass seven engines for economic transformation, seamless multimodal connectivity and logistics efficiency. It will also include infrastructure developed by state governments as per the Gati Shakti National Master Plan. The four focus areas will be planning; financing, including through innovative ways; use of technology; and speedier implementation.
What is the Gati Shakti Master Plan?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched PM Gati Shakti – National Master Plan for multi-modal connectivity. The master plan is essentially a digital platform that will bring 16 ministries including Railways and Roadways together for integrated planning, coordinated implementation of infrastructure connectivity projects while providing seamless connectivity for movement of people, goods, and services from one mode of transport to another. It will facilitate the last mile connectivity of infrastructure and also reduce travel time for people.
The project has also been pegged as a source of employment opportunities.
PM Gati Shakti Master Plan is based on six pillars
Comprehensiveness: It will include all the existing and planned initiatives of various ministries and departments with one centralized portal. Each and every Department will now have visibility of each other’s activities providing critical data while planning and execution of projects.
Prioritization: Different Departments will be able to prioritize their projects through cross-sectoral interactions.
Optimization: The National Master Plan will assist different ministries in planning for projects after the identification of critical gaps.
Synchronization: Individual Ministries and Departments often work in silos. PM Gati Shakti will help in synchronizing the activities of each department, as well as of different layers of governance, in a holistic manner by ensuring coordination of work between them.
Analytical: The plan will provide the entire data in one place with GIS-based spatial planning and analytical tools having 200+ layers.
Dynamic: All Ministries and Departments will now be able to visualize, review and monitor the progress of cross-sectoral projects, through the GIS platform.
What are the focus areas of the master plan?
The national master plan will fix mega-infrastructure and connectivity targets for India by 2024-25. This includes having a network of 2 lakh km of national highways, trains handling cargo of 1,600 million tonnes (MT), doubling gas pipeline network to 35,000 km, having total 220 airports, airstrips and aerodromes, a 25000-acre area developed for industries, including 11 industrial corridors, achieving a Rs 1.7 lakh crore turnover in defence production and having 38 electronics manufacturing clusters and 109 pharma clusters by 2024-25.
Under the plan, the government will set up an Empowered Group of Secretaries (EGoS) of all these departments under the chairmanship of the Cabinet Secretary for approving any changes in the master plan to meet any emerging requirements till 2024-25. An Integrated Multimodal Network Planning Group (NPG) with senior officials will be responsible for unified planning and integration of these proposals. The NPG will also examine infrastructure connectivity projects of over Rs 500 crore which are outside the master plan currently as their DPRs have either been completed or in advanced stage.
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