Speaking at a national conference focusing on 'Warehousing Leasing, Investment & Development' on Thursday, Amrit Lal Meena, Special Secretary, Ministry of Promotion of Industry and Domestic Trade, Ministry of Trade and Industry, emphasized the importance of regulation and standardization in warehousing and that manual prescribing standards for warehousing is in the make. The event was held by The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), a non-governmental trade association and advocacy group based in New Delhi, India, representing the interests of trade and commerce in India.

He said: "Unless there is a policy framework, it is difficult to introduce regulation and standardization. So when the Prime Minister Gati Shakti was launched and a review of the logistics policy was carried out and we found that only three states had state storage and logistics policy However, as a result of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)'s continued coordination with state governments over the past 7 months, 12 states now have their state logistics policies."

He informed the meeting that the warehouses in various states are also mapped on the digital platform developed under the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan.

Meena, who was the main guest at the conference, also touched on the topic of introducing regulations in warehousing. He said: "We will probably soon come up with a handbook that prescribes standards for storage, tracking systems and also the IT-related management systems of the warehouses. These standards have been developed taking into account worldwide practices and in consultation with warehouse authorities and associations that hold. However, they are in consultation at the moment."

He also added: "There is an urge to create a new world-class warehouse infrastructure in the country with special central assistance. Hopefully, with these standards, the policies and the support of all of you, we will be able to provide a much more advanced and robust warehouse system in the country."

TK Manoj Kumar, Chairman of the Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) said that the pledged financing against WR (Warehouse Receipt) since decades is about Rs 30 to 40,000 crores while the total agricultural credit is 18L crores (FY 2022-23). He said banks are able to achieve this goal without increasing post-harvest funding, especially pledge funding against e-NWRs (E-Negotiable Warehouse Receipt) to be phased in as a target for banks.”

He added: "We have put in place a plan to promote pledge financing against e-NWRs. A total of 88 banks have been identified to operate and the task has already begun on this front. We have spoken to all PSBs and I am pleased that some PSBs are considering launching exclusive lending products for e-NWRs with reduced interest rates and incentives such as exemption from processing fees.In FY2020-21, the committed funding against e-NWRs was about 740 crores, in 2021-22 it was Rs1490 crores, and in 2022 -23, it had already exceeded 780 crores in the first quarter itself thanks to the efforts we made."

Anay Shukla, Chief Customer Officer of Welspun One Logistics Parks, who attended the event, said that over the past year, $1 billion of investment has been lost in the sector, which plays a vital role in the supply chain and found industry.

The key panelists at the conference also featured noted names from the industry including Jasjit Sethi, Chairman, National Council on Logistics, ASSOCHAM and CEO of TCI Supply Chain; dr. Indravir Yadav IAS (Retd), Managing Director of Prerna Logistics; Sujash Bera, Director, Logistics & Industrial of India, JLL; and Hitender Mehta, Co-Chair in the Council on SEZs, Industrial Parks and Warehousing at ASSOCHAM.