Cabinet to set up Integrated Transport and Logistics Authority

NEW DELHI, OCT 6 (PTI): The Cabinet on Tuesday approved a proposal to set up an Integrated Transport and Logistics Authority (ITLA), Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.
The authority will function as the apex body for integrated transport and logistics planning, research, project appraisal and monitoring, policy support and data analytics.
ITLA will prepare a long-term Transport Plan covering roads, railways, ports and shipping, civil aviation, inland waterways, coastal shipping, urban mobility and logistics, he said.
The decision to set up ITLA was taken in a meeting of the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The cabinet “approved the setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), namely, Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority (ITLA) to strengthen research, planning, appraisal, monitoring and impact assessment within the broad domains of Transportation and Logistics”, an official statement said on Tuesday.
The approval seeks to address the long-standing challenges arising from fragmented planning and implementation across multiple transport-related ministries and agencies. By fostering greater coordination and multi-modal integration, ITLA is expected to enhance the efficiency, sustainability and effectiveness of transport infrastructure development in India.
The authority will evaluate short-term sectoral plans (5 years or so) and annual plans of transport ministries to ensure consistency and alignment with the National Transport Master Plan and promote multi-modal infrastructure development.
It will also undertake technical appraisal of government infrastructure projects, costing Rs 500 crore or more. Financial appraisal will continue to be carried out through the existing financial appraisal mechanisms. The authority will monitor implementation of transport and infrastructure projects above Rs 500 crore and provide a coordinated mechanism for issue resolution. It will undertake post-implementation impact assessment of these projects.
ITLA will build a unified transport data repository by obtaining relevant transport and logistics datasets from multiple sources, including GSTN e-way bill, FASTag, Vahan, GPS-based systems, urban traffic management systems and other relevant databases and carry out data analytics for planning, monitoring, and impact assessment.
It will also advise and assist in the review and updation of the National Logistics Policy (2022), capacity building, training, and skilling in the logistics sector.