According to the latest annual report by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) for 2023-24, India’s first Multi-Modal Logistics Park (MMLP) at Jogighopa in Assam is nearing completion and is expected to be operational by next year, assuming everything proceeds as planned. The project deadline has been delayed a number times due to operational hurdles in the past. The Jogighopa project is notable as the first of 35 such MMLPs that the Government of India has planned to establish across the country, with the development fully funded by the government and executed by the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd. (NHIDCL).
MoRTH’s report highlights that significant progress has been made on various aspects of the Jogighopa MMLP, including the development of road, rail, and water connectivity, site leveling, boundary work, and the construction of administrative buildings and waste treatment facilities. The report also notes that the procurement process is underway for developers on a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) basis to build and operate logistics facilities such as business centers, container yards, warehouses, and cold storage.
The estimated cost for the first phase of the Jogighopa MMLP is Rs 693.97 crore, with the foundation stone laid in October 2020 by the Minister for Road Transport & Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari. MoRTH finalized the Model Concessionaire Agreement (MCA) for MMLPs under the Bharatmala Pariyojana in October 2021, following an extensive process of inter-ministerial consultations. This agreement, along with the Model RFP document finalized in November 2021, will guide the development of individual MMLP projects.
MoRTH’s report further details the broader plan to develop 35 MMLPs across India as part of the Bharatmala Pariyojana, with an anticipated total investment of around Rs 46,000 crore. These logistics parks, once operational, are expected to handle approximately 700 million metric tonnes of cargo. The report emphasizes that 15 of these MMLPs have been prioritized for development, with a total investment of about Rs 22,000 crore, and six MMLPs have already been awarded in locations including Jogighopa, Chennai, Indore, Bengaluru, Nagpur, and Jalna.
The Ministry also plans to sanction seven additional MMLPs in 2024-25, with bids already invited for projects in Anantapur, Pune, and Nashik. This strategic initiative by MoRTH underscores the government’s commitment to enhancing India’s logistics infrastructure, with the Jogighopa MMLP serving as a pivotal project in this nationwide effort.
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