The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved 12 new project proposals under the National Industrial Corridor Development Programme (NICDP). With an estimated investment of โน28,602 crore, these projects are poised to transform India into a global manufacturing powerhouse, according to a government release.
The newly sanctioned industrial areas will be strategically located across the country, with sites in Khurpia in Uttarakhand, Rajpura-Patiala in Punjab, Dighi in Maharashtra, Palakkad in Kerala, Agra and Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, Gaya in Bihar, Zaheerabad in Telangana, Orvakal and Kopparthy in Andhra Pradesh, and Jodhpur-Pali in Rajasthan.
Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw didn’t name the 12th project citing the model code of conduct following the announcement of assembly elections, providing enough hint that the site will be located either in Haryana or Jammu & Kashmir.
These sites will soon host state-of-the-art industrial smart cities, each designed to foster a vibrant industrial ecosystem. The proposed industrial nodes would focus on creating regional manufacturing hubs across the country.
โAbout 10 lakh direct jobs and 30 lakh indirect employment potential will be created through this. Today, manufacturing activities from all over the world are shifting to India. Be it electronics manufacturing, mobile manufacturing or defence manufacturing, all these are shifting to India. These corridors and these industrial area projects will accelerate that shift,โ Vaishnaw said at a Cabinet briefing.
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The NICDP aims to facilitate investments from both large anchor industries and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), serving as catalysts to achieve the government’s ambitious goal of $2 trillion in exports by 2030.
The development of these industrial cities is envisioned as greenfield smart cities built to global standards, embodying the ‘plug-n-play’ and ‘walk-to-work’ concepts. This innovative approach ensures that the cities will be equipped with advanced infrastructure designed to support sustainable and efficient industrial operations. The projects are closely aligned with the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, which focuses on integrated and seamless multi-modal connectivity.
These industrial hubs are expected to be transformative growth centres, driving the economic development of entire regions. The NICDP is projected to create significant employment opportunities, with an estimated 1 million direct jobs and up to 3 million indirect jobs.
