UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — PM GatiShakti National Master Plan completes five years of transforming India’s infrastructure landscape

Q1. With reference to the institutional framework for implementing the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The apex group of Secretaries can prescribe the framework and norms for making subsequent amendments to the National Master Plan.
  2. The Network Planning Group, made up of Secretaries of the member Ministries, is the apex body to which the Empowered Group of Secretaries reports.
  3. The Technical Support Unit brings in domain expertise from sectors such as aviation, maritime, rail and roads to support project evaluation.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 2 and 3 only

Q2. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. The institutional framework of the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan can be restructured without amending any Act of Parliament.
  2. The National Master Plan and its institutional framework were approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs as an executive decision and have no statutory basis.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q3. A proposed highway alignment passes through a forest patch and crosses the route of a gas pipeline that another ministry has planned. Under siloed planning, such conflicts usually come to light only during execution. Which feature of the PM GatiShakti approach is designed to address this problem most directly?

  • A. Transferring execution powers of line ministries to a single central implementing agency
  • B. Overlaying the spatial data of different ministries on a common base before project approval
  • C. Pooling the budgets of infrastructure ministries into one consolidated fund before sanction
  • D. Mandating post-completion impact audits of every project by an independent statutory regulator

Q4. Consider the following interventions for improving logistics efficiency in India: Which of the above fall primarily within the domain of the National Logistics Policy, 2022 rather than the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan?

  1. Integrated network planning of rail, road and port connectivity to economic clusters
  2. Digitisation and integration of logistics-related digital systems
  3. Human resource development and skilling of the logistics workforce
  4. Process reforms and improvement of logistics services
  • A. 2, 3 and 4 only
  • B. 1, 2, 3 and 4
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1, 3 and 4 only

Q5. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. Setting the DPIIT–NCAER estimate of India's logistics cost at about 7.97% of GDP against the earlier-cited 13–14% does not establish that logistics cost has nearly halved.
  2. The National Logistics Policy, 2022 aims to place India among the top 25 countries in the World Bank's Logistics Performance Index by 2030.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q6. Consider the following facts: (i) A DPIIT–NCAER study estimates India's logistics cost at about 7.97% of GDP for 2023-24, using primary survey data from industry stakeholders combined with official secondary data. (ii) Figures of 13–14% of GDP cited earlier were based on partial or external data. (iii) An earlier NCAER exercise had put the cost for 2021-22 in a range of 7.8–8.9% of GDP. Which of the following inferences can be validly drawn from the above facts?

  1. Estimates of logistics cost as a share of GDP are sensitive to the method and data sources used to compute them.
  2. India's logistics cost as a share of GDP fell by nearly half between the period of the earlier estimates and 2023-24.
  3. India has already met the National Logistics Policy's goal of bringing logistics cost in line with global benchmarks.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3
  • D. 1 only

Q7. Consider the following assertion: 'PM GatiShakti has evolved from a Central planning tool into an instrument of cooperative federalism.' Which of the following statements support the above assertion?

  1. All States and Union Territories have been onboarded and plan on the platform using their own data layers.
  2. District Master Plans have carried integrated, area-based planning down to district administrations.
  3. The Empowered Group of Secretaries that oversees the plan is chaired by the Cabinet Secretary.
  4. A decentralised data-uploading system lets sub-national governments keep their own layers up to date.
  • A. 1, 2 and 4 only
  • B. 2, 3 and 4 only
  • C. 1, 2, 3 and 4
  • D. 1 and 2 only