New Delhi - The 53rd National Planning Group (NPG) was held on 9 August 2023 at New Delhi, under the chairpersonship of Special Secretary, Logistics, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Smt. Sumita Dawra. The meeting saw active participation from member Department and Ministries, i.e., Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Ministry of Railways, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Power and NITI Aayog.

Special Secretary, Logistics, DPIIT highlighted that keeping in view the vision of the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi for Area Development Approach, the discussed projects would provide multimodal connectivity for socio-economic development and decongest the existing city and rail infrastructure. These projects are of critical importance for future capacity augmentation and will enhance logistics efficiency of the project region.

During the meeting, six projects, 3 M/o Railways projects and 3 M/o Road Transport and Highways projects with a total project cost of Rs. 28,875.16 Cr. were evaluated. These projects are expected to improve the connectivity to various villages and key industrial business hubs by bypassing congested and highly populated areas and reduce travel time. The proposed projects are also expected to expand business avenues and generate employment opportunities for local people.