File photo: PM Modi
NEW DELHI: For the first time, India will establish an apex federal agency for planning and monitoring the entire transport sector, similar to institutions in developed countries. The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by PM Narendra Modi and attended by five cabinet ministers and their secretaries dealing with this sector.Sources said the agency — Gati-Shakti Transport Planning and Research Organisation (GTPRO) — will be set up within the cabinet secretariat and will be headed by a secretary-level officer to ensure better coordination. This move comes as the government aims at breaking down silos in transport infrastructure planning, which has seen over Rs 50 lakh crore invested in the past 11 years. The apex body, after gathering detailed data and research inputs, will initiate master planning and monitor progress.The government has also noted that current planning is primarily consultant-driven, with minimal collaboration among ministries and states. Also, there is no central agency responsible for policy advocacy or recommending changes to Acts and Rules to improve planning and project implementation. Sources added that there is no mechanism for mid-course correction in case of project failures.TOI on Sept 23 had reported the government’s plan to set up an apex empowered agency for preparation of comprehensive transport strategies for all modes of transportation and end-to-end mobility.Sources said that during the meeting, international best practices were discussed, including the Korea Transport Institute (KOTI), a think tank under the South Korean prime minister’s office that provides recommendations and alternatives for the nation’s transport policies. Other models from China, the United States, and Australia were also reviewed.“The PM has been vocal about breaking silos and moving towards integrated infrastructure planning. He emphasised the need for integrated transport planning to achieve maximum results. The necessity of such an ecosystem in India was discussed in detail, especially since there is currently no apex agency and each ministry has its own vision document. The absence of such a central body means there are no defined five-year or ten-year plans,” a source said.Though the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan framework has been in place, it has largely become a project appraisal platform. Moreover, multiple frameworks for project monitoring exist, but there is no agency tasked with recommending global best practices or innovative implementation methods.To start, the govt will constitute a Group of Transport Experts (GTE) from fields such as transport planning, supply chain management, data science, and network optimisation, with members drawn from IITs in Delhi, Chennai, BHU, and BITS Pilani. This group will provide technical support to the sectoral group of secretaries and suggest appropriate plans spanning five, 10, and 15 years.
