Transport, shipping to generate 2% of GDP in two years

The road transport and shipping sectors would contribute 2% and even more to the GDP growth of the country in two years. This was stated by Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari while launching the e-books of his ministries here today.

These sectors would generate nearly 25 lakh new jobs in the coming year, he added. Underscoring the achievements of the Ministry of Road Transport in the past year, the minister said investors have agreed to work on the PPP model for five projects.

He said several IT-based e-governance initiatives such as e-following, e-pay, overweight cargo, and over-dimensional cargo approvals had been introduced.

A platform for infrastructure and materials providers, INAM-PRO, linking the suppliers to the road contractors and users has been commissioned. It is a historical step towards delivering cement at an economical price, the minister said.

Mentioning the target of 30 km per day of highway construction in two years, he said a leap of 400% had already been taken as the construction has gone up to 13 km per day from 3 km per day during the last leg of the previous government.

He expressed the hope that the ‘Road Transport & Safety Bill 2014’ would be passed in the next session of Parliament.