Supply Chain Management Case Study

Logistics in India – A Case of Missed Opportunity?

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Abstract:
The Indian logistics industry is set to grow massively from $90 billion to $125 billion in 2010. India has increasingly integrated into global trade which requires it to address the global supply chain and on time delivery. India's express industry is predicted to be one of the fastest growing sectors in the economy. Moreover, it is expected to surpass other growing sectors like retail, banking, financial, chemical and automobiles over the next five years. However, the industry is fragmented, consisting of some 2,500 Indian and foreign companies vying for this enormous market. While the established players provide an integrated delivery service, the focus of the small players is to gain a corner in the supply chain market. A number of them offer only one or two services out of a range of services comprising of:

1. Transportation
2. Express cargo delivery
3. Warehousing
4. Freight forwarding
5. Courier services
6. Bulk and container freight

Large scale retailing, government initiatives, and growing containerised cargo at ports are a few factors that propelled the growth of the industry. In spite of the favourable circumstances the industry has several roadblocks. High transportation and storage cost, low productivity, complex tax laws and feeble technology result in various operational inefficiencies and undue delays in distribution networks. It is to be seen whether the Indian logistics industry will overcome these bottlenecks and grow with the rising economy and support other industries like retail whose growth depends on strong and efficient logistics.

Pedagogical Objectives:

This case study attempts to achieve the following pedagogical objectives:
• To an overview of the Indian Logistics Industry.
• To the evolving opportunities in the express delivery sector.
• To businesses and government initiatives.
• To roadblocks in the industry.

Keywords :  Indian logistics industry, Express delivery industry, Container Corporation of India Ltd, Containerised cargo, National Highway Authority of India, Dedicated freight corridor, Free trade warehousing zones, Customer bonded warehousing, Unorganised and semi organised segments, Blue Dart, AFL, DTDC, UPS, FedEx, DHL

Contents:

• Indian Logistics Industry-An Overview
• Opportunities and Challenges