New Delhi: Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said India's logistics cost will come down to single digit in the next five years. Addressing the 'Daylight Government Summit', Gadkari said the ministry is building several highways and expressways, which will help reduce India's logistics cost.

The goal is to make the automobile industry number one

According to estimates by economic think tank National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), logistics cost in India was between 7.8 per cent and 8.9 per cent of GDP in 2021-22. The Road Transport and Highways Minister further said that his aim is to make the Indian automobile industry number one in the world.

We left India and Japan behind

He said that last year India had overtaken Japan to become the world's third largest automobile market. Now it is behind only the US and China. According to him, the size of India's automobile industry is projected to grow from Rs 7.5 lakh crore in 2014 to Rs 22 lakh crore in 2024. Talking about India's broader economy, Gadkari said that India is the fastest growing major economy in the world.

There is a need to reduce exports

He further said that if we can increase the purchasing power of farmers, it will have a big positive impact on our economy. Gadkari also stressed that India needs to increase its exports and reduce imports. Like smart cities, smart villages are also economically viable. The minister said that in any organisation, performance audits are more important than financial audits.