Australia, UK varsities setting up campuses in Navi Mumbai: CM Devendra Fadnavis
University of York, Western Australia University sign MoUs worth Rs 3,000 crore
3 min read
Two MoUs — Rs 1,500 crore each — were signed with foreign universities at the WAVES summit (Express Photo)Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday announced that the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) will set up an Edu City in Navi Mumbai, which will be the country’s first educational campus for foreign universities. Two MoUs — Rs 1,500 crore each — were signed with foreign universities at the WAVES summit.
“CIDCO signed an agreement worth Rs 1,500 crore with University of York from the UK and another MoU worth Rs 1,500 crore with Western Australia University. These universities will set up their off-shore campuses in Navi Mumbai,” said Fadnavis. He added that discussions with three other prominent universities was complete and UGC clearance was awaited.
“In addition five more universities have held primary talks. We are setting up the country’s first educational campus with foreign universities in Navi Mumbai and two MoUs were signed today,” he said.
Fadnavis added that another MoU with Prime Focus was signed for setting up a new Film City, which will give direct jobs to 2,500 people and indirect jobs to over 10,000 people. “It (Film City) will be AI-powered and the best in the world. The world’s most expensive and technologically advanced films can be shot here. Similarly, Godrej too is setting up its Film City in Panvel and an MoU worth Rs 2,000 crore has been signed,” he said, adding that it will create jobs in large numbers.
These MoUs on niche areas will have a multiplier effect, he said. “Nowadays, Film City is not about location but about technology. It will have an eco-system for shooting to post-production,” he said, adding that Mumbai has become the undeclared capital of audio-visual technology.
Prime Focus said it will invest Rs 3,000 crore to develop a new global entertainment destination in Mumbai for content creators, tourists and fans. “This new site will be a best practice example of what India can deliver in technology, creativity and entertainment, and will become a worldwide leisure destination, right at the heart of one of the world’s oldest filmmaking industries,” Prime Focus Group founder Namit Malhotra said.
Later, speaking at the Studio and Technology Roundtable, Fadnavis said the new eco-system of entertainment and film industry is being created in Navi Mumbai and the government has identified a few locations along the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Expressway.
“We are absolutely open to the idea of global theme park. This is the idea behind creating the third Mumbai. We need a global theme park,” said Fadnavis, reacting to suggestions from earlier discussions of industry players.
Commenting on the state’s AI policy, Fadnavis said Maharashtra’s AI policy will be out in the next one month. The CM also appreciated the suggestions on digital identity registry. “Maharashtra can be the first state in this. This is like creating IP of digital identity… the future is digital identity,” he said. Fadnavis also mentioned that the new IICT will be developed in collaboration with IIT–Mumbai.
WAVES index at NSE
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis informed that NSE has started a WAVES index involving 43 audio-visual technology companies. This is an important step to create an eco-system for investment in the field, he said.
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