The 3rd BRICS Transport Working Group (TWG) Meeting commenced in Nagpur today under India's BRICS Chairship 2026, bringing together senior officials from BRICS Member Countries to advance cooperation on sustainable, resilient and future-ready transport systems.

Over the next two days, the delegates will deliberate on key policy priorities covering sustainable transport infrastructure, clean mobility, logistics resilience and multimodal connectivity, while strengthening institutional cooperation to address emerging global transport challenges.

Welcoming the delegates, Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, Shri V. Umashankar, reaffirmed India's commitment to collaborative and inclusive development guided by the timeless principle of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam—the world is one family.

He said India's BRICS Chairship theme, "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability," embodies a people-centric vision that seeks practical partnerships for creating efficient, sustainable and resilient transport ecosystems.

Highlighting the priorities of India's Chairship, the Secretary said the transport agenda has been structured around six flagship initiatives focusing on sustainability in infrastructure, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), transport decarbonisation, urban mobility, resilient logistics and railway research cooperation. These initiatives aim to deepen knowledge sharing, encourage technical collaboration, strengthen institutional partnerships and support capacity building across BRICS Member Countries.

He observed that the proposed initiatives build upon the progress achieved during previous BRICS Transport Working Group engagements while laying a stronger foundation for long-term cooperation in the sector. Collectively, they reflect the shared commitment of BRICS nations to developing transport systems that are innovative, environmentally responsible and responsive to the aspirations of people.

Shri V. Umashankar noted that the Nagpur meeting marks the culmination of an extensive consultative process involving five virtual preparatory meetings, during which Member Countries engaged in detailed discussions on the priority thematic areas identified under India's Chairship. Appreciating the constructive participation of all delegations, he expressed confidence that the same spirit of cooperation would guide the deliberations and help build broad consensus on key outcomes.

Reaffirming India's role as Chair, he assured participating delegations that the discussions would remain transparent, inclusive and consensus-driven, ensuring that the outcomes reflect the collective priorities and development perspectives of all BRICS Members.

He also underlined the growing significance of the expanded BRICS grouping, noting that its Member Countries together account for 49.5 per cent of the world's population, 40 per cent of global GDP and 26 per cent of global trade. In this context, he said enhanced cooperation in transport has the potential to strengthen connectivity, improve supply-chain resilience and contribute meaningfully to sustainable economic growth.

The Secretary expressed confidence that the deliberations over the next two days would reinforce the spirit of partnership and mutual learning among BRICS nations and pave the way for substantive outcomes at the forthcoming Ministerial Meeting.

The Working Group Meeting will be followed by the 3rd BRICS Transport Ministers' Meeting, scheduled to be held in Nagpur on 11th July 2026.

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GDH/DS