Focus on investment, drought-free projects for Maharashtra growth: Fadnavis

The Maharashtra government is creating an ecosystem to attract investment across all regions and implementing four river-linking projects worth around Rs 3 lakh crore to make the state drought-free, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Tuesday.  He said prominent regions and cities of Maharashtra are emerging as hubs in different sectors and this will address the issue of regional imbalance. Speaking at the 'India Global Forum Next" event in Mumbai, Fadnavis maintained Maharashtra is ensuring smooth and uninterrupted facilities for investors, and an ecosystem is being created to attract investment across all regions of the state.  As a result, a balanced development will be seen throughout Maharashtra over the next five years, he insisted. Fadnavis underlined that the state is creating new investment opportunities and supporting the global supply chain.

"The state is also leading in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in India. In addition, many major national and international companies are already operating in Maharashtra," the CM noted.  Four river-linking projects worth approximately Rs 3 lakh crore are being implemented to make the state drought-free, and a canal-based irrigation venture in Vidarbha is also underway, he said.  To meet the workforce demands of industries, a dedicated Skill University is functional, ensuring there was no shortage of trained manpower in the state, Fadnavis emphasised.  The Mahayuti government is encouraging setting up of industries based on green and smart technologies, he stated. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), spread across the financial capital and its adjoining districts, will play a significant role in making Maharashtra a USD 3 trillion economy.  The MMR alone has the capacity to build a USD 1.5 trillion economy, the CM noted. The metropolis is already India's fintech capital, and a "Third Mumbai" is being developed in Navi Mumbai, Fadnavis said.  This new area (Third Mumbai) will include an EduCity and an Innovation City. Five universities are already in final stages of planning to set up their campuses in the proposed EduCity, he highlighted.  The Navi Mumbai International Airport is nearing completion, and the Atal Setu, a 21.8km-long sea bridge connecting Sewri (Mumbai) and Nhava Sheva (Navi Mumbai), has significantly improved connectivity to the upcoming airport and surrounding areas, Fadnavis averred.  The country's largest port is being developed at Vadhavan (in Palghar district) and it will be connected via the Mumbai-Nagpur Samruddhi Expressway, facilitating the development of a "Fourth Mumbai" in that region, he said.  Alongside the development of MMR, equal emphasis is being placed on rural and underdeveloped regions -- Pune is a major hub for the automobile industry, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar is emerging as a centre for the electric vehicle sector and Gadchiroli is set to rise as India's new steel hub, the CM pointed out.  The Vidarbha region is expanding rapidly in solar energy production and the 700-km-long Samruddhi Expressway will benefit farmers and entrepreneurs across 15 districts, he said.  The Goa-Nagpur Shaktipeeth corridor will provide a boost to infrastructure and industrial development of Marathwada in central Maharashtra, Fadnavis emphasised.