Japan-aided DMIC likely to bring Rs 75,000-cr investment to UP

The Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project is estimated to facilitate investments of Rs 75,000 crore in the Greater Noida investment zone of Uttar Pradesh.

The zone, comprising Dadri-Noida-Ghaziabad, would attract food, electronics, auto, IT and other sunrise industries that is likely to create 1.2 million job opportunities. The Centre would also spend Rs 3,000 crore in the region under the DMIC.

Saurabh Chandra, Union secretary, industrial policy and promotion, gave a presentation on the DMIC to UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, with Yadav billing it as an important project for industrial development.

Assuring full cooperation towards the completion of the ambitious project, Yadav directed Infrastructure and Industrial Development Commissioner Anil Kumar Gupta to closely monitor its progress.

The much-awaited industrial corridor project is a Rs 5 lakh-crore mega infrastructure project with financial and technical aid from Japan. Seven investment centres and 13 industrial areas have been identified along the upcoming industrial corridor, of which an investment centre (Greater Noida) and an industrial area (Meerut-Muzaffarnagar) would fall in UP.

On either side of these centres, a ‘150-200 km area’ has been identified as dedicated freight corridor (DFC). These would be self-sustaining industrial townships with world-class infrastructure viz road, rail/air connectivity, quality social infrastructure and provide a competitive business environment.

Yadav said since DFC touches Khurja, it would help faster transportation of agricultural produce to JNP.

In the first phase of the project, the Greater Noida administration has identified development of the Bokadi railway station, metro rail in Noida-Greater Noida, Dadri-Tughlakhabad-Ballabgarh railway station, Noida-Greater Noida-Faridabad expressway, auto mart, power plant and logistic park.

Initially, hi-tech integrated industrial townships would be developed on UP State Industrial Development Corporation (UPSIDC) and Greater Noida Authority land. If needed, and, provided farmers are willing, more land could be acquired and they would be made stakeholders. The CM underlined the benefits should accrue to the farmers.

DMIC and DFC are touted among the biggest industrial development projects in India. Being strategically located between the western and eastern DFCs, UP has the potential to attract large investment.

Indian Railways intends to develop Multi-modal Logistics Parks (MMLP) through the public-private partnership (PPP) route along the eastern DFC at strategic locations. An MMLP was also proposed at Kanpur.