The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the setting up of the Integrated Transport and Logistics Authority (ITLA) as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to strengthen research, planning, project appraisal, monitoring and impact assessment across the transportation and logistics sectors.
The new authority is aimed at addressing the long-standing challenges arising from fragmented planning and implementation across different transport ministries and agencies. The government expects greater coordination and multimodal integration through ITLA to improve the efficiency, sustainability and effectiveness of transport infrastructure development.
ITLA will function as the apex institution for integrated transport and logistics planning, research, project appraisal and monitoring, policy support and data analytics. A key responsibility of the authority will be to prepare a comprehensive National Transport Master Plan with a planning horizon of 10 years or more.
The proposed master plan will cover roads, railways, ports and shipping, civil aviation, inland waterways, coastal shipping, urban mobility and logistics. ITLA will also evaluate short-term sectoral plans of around five years and annual plans prepared by transport ministries to ensure that they remain aligned with the National Transport Master Plan and support multimodal infrastructure development.
The authority will undertake the technical appraisal of Government of India infrastructure projects costing ₹500 crore or more. Financial appraisal of these projects will continue to be carried out through the existing financial appraisal mechanisms.
ITLA will also monitor the implementation of transport and infrastructure projects above the ₹500-crore threshold. It will provide a coordinated mechanism for resolving issues during project implementation and undertake post-implementation impact assessments to evaluate the outcomes of major infrastructure investments.
Another key responsibility will be the creation of a National Transport Data Repository (NTDR). The repository will integrate transport and logistics datasets from multiple sources, including GSTN e-way bills, FASTag, Vahan, GPS-based systems and urban traffic management systems.
The integrated data will be used for analytics such as freight-flow and origin-destination analysis. These insights are intended to support transport planning, project monitoring and impact assessment and make infrastructure planning more data-driven.
ITLA will also advise and assist in the review and updation of the National Logistics Policy, 2022. Its mandate will include capacity building, training and skilling in the logistics sector, besides promoting research and innovation in transportation and logistics.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the authority would help bring different infrastructure sectors together for comprehensive transport planning. He noted that as economic activity expands, logistics requirements are also increasing, making it necessary to assess future requirements for roads, railways, ports, airports and waterways in an integrated manner.
The government said the establishment of ITLA will support India’s Vision 2047 by strengthening multimodal connectivity, improving infrastructure efficiency, reducing logistics costs and enhancing the country’s global logistics competitiveness. The authority is also expected to build institutional capacity in research, long-term planning, big-data integration, project monitoring and evaluation, while supporting the adoption of international best practices.
