The Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated a single window logistics portal - National Logistics Portal (marine) in New Delhi.

The National Logistic Portal (marine) (NLP) is a project of national importance, as envisaged by the Ministry of Ports Shipping Waterways and the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. It is a one-stop platform aimed at connecting all the stakeholders of the logistics community using IT, to improve efficiency and transparency by reducing costs and time delays and achieving easier, faster, and more competitive offerings of services, to promote the growth of the logistics sector and thereby improve trade.

NLP will be a single window for all trade processes of the logistics sector spread across the country covering all modes of transport in the waterways, roadways, and airways along with an E-marketplace to provide a seamless end-to-end logistic service coverage. It Is a one stop marketplace where all logistic stakeholders are integrated for easier, speedier & competitive services thereby promoting trade and growth.

The implementation of NLP had been initiated in July 2021 with the development of NLP Marine as a first phase. It is an “open platform” that allows the coexistence of multiple service providers to provide EXIM-related services independently or by combining different connectivity options. It has the capability to integrate with various Port Operating Systems/Terminal Operating Systems, ICEGATE, Other regulatory agencies, and stakeholder(s) systems in the ecosystem. It aims to reduce regulatory complexities and enhance the ease of doing business by moving towards user-friendly paperless trade.

This will be accomplished by utilizing the prowess of IT infrastructure to develop a single window, centralizing all necessary documentation, compliance certifications, and formal procedures necessary for the EXIM trade.

The activities of NLP Marine are categorized into four distinct verticals - Carrier, Cargo, Banking and Finance, and Regulatory Bodies and Participating Government Agencies (PGAs). This will enrich the user experience through end-to-end tracking of the shipment with notifications at each stage, seamless exchange of documents, and the ability to securely transact with transparency and speed.

The NLP Marine experience is enhanced further with the Latch On feature, which facilitates the trade in providing the required features that are not directly embedded into NLP Marine, by linking through systems developed by other agencies seamlessly without duplication of efforts. It is envisaged that many standalone applications, developed by multiple vendors, users, and other stakeholders will integrate with NLP Marine through appropriate curation. It also enables digital transactions for payments required for the clearance processes such as Port charges, CFS charges, shipping line charges, transportation charges, etc.

Addressing the gathering, Sonowal said, “The Prime Minister on 15th August 2021 announced the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan to provide systematic, multi modal connectivity to various economic zones for seamless movement of people, goods & services resulting in efficient conduct of logistics and economic activities. To fulfil this mission, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has developed the NLP (marine) as an “open platform” that allows the coexistence of multiple service providers to provide EXIM-related services independently or by combining different connectivity options.”