Logistics cost in India is more expensive than the United States, which needs to be minimised using the country’s railways and waterways, said an expert on Wednesday at the Global Exhibition of Services (GES). “Logistics in India costs 13 to 14 per cent of the GDP while in the US it is only nine per cent,” said Armes Maini Storage Systems chief executive and Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII) shipping and logistics committee national member S.A. Mohan. Mohan said India’s transportation model is skewed, with 60 per cent encompassing road transport, 20 to 25 per cent rail transport and the balance 10 to 15 per cent via waterways.

Appreciating the national logistics policy as a step in the right direction, Mohan highlighted that first and last mile connectivity to micro small and medium enterprises (MSME) should be guaranteed as they operate on a very small budgets. Bereft of standardisation, too many players lack coordination in Indian logistics, he said at the transport & logistics session titled Emerging Trends in Logistics: The India Opportunity.

Shivayogi C. Kalasad, managing director, Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) said technology has the potential to transform logistics and enable savings, incorporating artificial intelligence and big data. Taking the case of the state road transport corporation, Kalasad said digitisation had greatly helped KSRTC to improve the quality of service. He said KSRTC has introduced wearable technology to monitor and track the bus drivers and also keep them awake from dozing away. Kalasad said data driven decision making will play a key role in logistics in the future.