Nashik To Host Maharashtra's Third Multi-Modal Logistics Park As NHAI Invites Bids For Rs 336 Crore Project

Close on the heels of awarding the contract for the development of Maharashtra's inaugural Multi-Modal Logistics Park (MMLP) in Nagpur, the NHAI has now invited bids to construct a MMLP in Nashik.

The Rs 336.55 crore logistics park in Niphad taluka of Nashik is being executed by the National Highways Logistics Management Ltd. (NHLML), a special purpose vehicle of the National Highway Authority (NHAI). The project will be developed under a design-build-finance-operate-and-transfer (DBFOT) framework.

Significantly, the Nashik MMLP will mark the third logistics park of its kind in the state, following the Nagpur and Pune MMLPs.

In December 2023, the NHAI had signed an agreement with DC Multi-Modal Park (Nagpur) Limited, a special purpose vehicle of Deltabulk Shipping, the Indian unit of the London-based Delta Corp, for the development of the MMLP in Nagpur. It is being developed in an area of 150 acres under the Public Private Partnership model at an estimated cost of Rs 673 crore.

Under the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has decided to develop 35 multi-modal logistics parks (MMLPs) across India, targeting some of the highest freight movement regions in the country.

Nashik is one of the foremost locations selected for the creation of a multi-modal logistics park under this scheme. These mega establishments aim to reduce logistics costs to 8-9 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP). Currently, logistics account for 14 per cent of GDP, making India less competitive on the global stage.

Catering to 50 per cent of the nation's road freight movement, the MMLPs will maximise the efficiency of goods movements across the country.

To date, contracts have been awarded for five MMLPs, including Nagpur, Chennai, Bengaluru, Indore, and Jogighopa. The pioneering multi-modal logistics park, situated in Jogighopa, Guwahati, Assam, had its foundation laid in October 2020, with a projected completion date of this year.