Maharashtra: Samruddhi Corridor gets top priority

The first phase of the Rs 55,000-crore corridor, a flagship project of the state government, is confined to 706-km eight-lane stretch between Nagpur and Mumbai, while the second phase is planned for development of industrial hubs.

“Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) will be the planning authority for industrial layouts in these nodes. The expressway will reduce the travel time drastically from 16 hours to eight hours. Logistics and warehousing hubs are being planned along the way with Nagpur-Wardha as a major logistics corridor. It would also be developed as Electric Vehicle (EV) expressway by setting up charging stations along its length,” the new industrial policy 2019 says.

The Samruddhi Mahamarg, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, will open new avenues of jobs and employment. “It will bridge the divide between rural and urban,” he said.

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The government has ensured that Samruddhi Mahamarg is linked to the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor and the Western Dedicated Industrial Corridor, which will help Maharashtra have direct connectivity to these corridors and the Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNPT), country’s largest container port. It would help in enhancing the Export Import Policy (EXIM) of the state.

The policy also calls for expediting the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) – a central government’s infrastructure programme – to develop new industrial cities as “smart cities” and covering next generation technologies across infrastructure sector.

Under this, two projects are planned in Maharashtra – the Shendra-Bidkin Industrial Area (SBIA) and Dighi Port Industrial Area (DPIA).

Spread across 84 square km, SBIA is being developed as a major export business hub because of its proximity to the existing industrial areas in Aurangabad, existing airport and railways. DPIA, spread across 253 square km, is a port, trade and industrial hub that will augment the part of Mumbai as India’s western gateway to global trade, commerce and industry.

The industrial policy also mentions that MIDC would be responsible for developing state-of-the-art infrastructure in new industrial estates. It would also develop infrastructure in upcoming special industrial zones viz 20 industrial nodes in Samruddhi Mahamarg, DMIC and various central and state governments’ industrial corridor projects.

The policy recommends creation of new land bank to fast-track its mega industrial and infrastructure projects across Maharashtra.

The MIDC, which will be the nodal agency in facilitating land for the big ticket projects in multiple sectors, beyond manufacturing and services, has been given the target to create one lakh-hectare land bank, sources in the industries department said.

“The demand for land has been envisaged following the state government’s decision to explore and extend incentives to non-conventional sectors, such as defence, aerospace, gems and jewellery, and wellness industry,” an official in the department said.