NEW DELHI: The Government, in its second tenure, is once again considering having a unified Transport Ministry through combining the Road, Railways, Civil Aviation and Shipping Ministries, according to Officials familiar with the matter.

A top panel of Secretaries, constituted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to recommend transformative ideas for the infrastructure sector, discussed the Unified Transport Ministry idea with the Cabinet Secretary recently.

“We have recommended that the way forward is a Unified Transport Ministry to provide Integrated

Multi-Modal solutions,” one senior official said.

The Secretarial panel is likely to make a presentation before the Prime Minister soon. “A final call on whether to go ahead with the recommendation will be taken only after the meeting with the PM,” the official added.

An omnibus Transport Ministry is not a new concept. Countries such as China already have it — the Country’s Ministry of Transport is mandated to make regulations for road, railways, water and air transportation. Cities like New York and London have a single body to govern public transport.

‘Need for co-ordinated approach’ The panel on infrastructure, headed by Aviation Secretary P.S. Khairola, has also recommended that the role of the existing aviation regulator — Airports Economic Regulatory Authority — could be expanded to cover the entire transport sector.

As of now, close to half-a-dozen Central Ministries, including roads, railways, housing, civil aviation and shipping cater to the transport sector. Almost all of them work in isolation, with minimal or no coordination with each other.

“The idea is to have some kind of coordinated planning while setting up a road, railway line or airport,” said a Road Ministry official privy to the matter. “Presently, all the sectors are working in silos. A coordinated approach will not only improve efficiency but will also go a long way in cutting costs.”

The official added that it is one of the recommendations made by the Group of Secretaries on infrastructure. “Nothing has been decided on what will be its structure. Whether it will be an omnibus Ministry of Transport or an Integrated Transport Planning Body that will decide on projects and investment to be made in the sector.”