15.10.11

Maha plans 4 new industrial towns

The state will develop four mega integrated industrial towns as part of the multi-million dollar Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor (DMIC). The plan is to develop these cities in such a way that these serve as counter magnets to Mumbai in economic activity. As part of the DMIC which will connect six states, the state has decided to develop Dighi in Raigad, the Sendra-Bidkin belt in Aurangabad, Sinnar-Malegaon in Nashik, and areas in Dhule as planned industrial townships to act as major investment nodes. At a meeting in Mantralaya on Friday, the government decided to initiate a pilot project with the Aurangabad belt. The US firm, AECOM, has been roped in as a consultant for planning the township. Sources said that the consultant will be responsible for preparing a master plan for the development in all the districts. The DMIC was first envisaged by the Centre in 2006. Industrial areas and regions were to be developed to serve as investment hubs along the proposed Delhi-Mumbai freight corridor. Officials said that stress would be on development of integrated townships with modern infrastructure for all the four areas. The state has also decided to rope in a Japanese consortium to recommend use of technology for infrastructure upgrades in these areas. Based on the investment potential of an area, the state has plans to develop the Aurangabad belt as an automobile and engineering hub, while Dighi, which has a port, will be developed to attract investments from steel, metal and agro industries. The Nashik belt is expected to cater to engineering and auto- based investments while Dhule will be developed to attract carmakers. Sources said that nearly 20,000 hectares of land will have to be acquired for the project involving four areas. The land acquisition exercise has been initiated in the Dighi and Aurangabad belts.

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