The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has revised the model concession agreement for Multi Modal Logistics Parks (MMLP) to strengthen the role of independent experts and speed up project execution.
The government plans to develop 35 Multi-Modal Logistics Parks in major freight corridors through National Highways Logistics Management Limited (NHLML), a wholly owned arm of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). The parks will follow a hub and spoke model aimed at lowering freight costs and transit time, reducing congestion and pollution, and improving cargo tracking through infrastructure and technology integration.
The projects will be implemented through public partnerships on a design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT) basis. The revised agreement, prepared after consultations by an inter-ministerial panel including NITI Aayog and other departments, mandates robust IT systems for real time data exchange, compliance with environmental and data protection norms, and the appointment of a safety consultant.
It also defines structured dispute resolution mechanisms including arbitration, conciliation, and civil court adjudication for disputes above ₹10 crore, while independent experts will review designs, monitor construction, conduct tests, issue certificates and track operational KPIs such as freight train turnaround time.
