Policy will attract Rs 5 lakh cr, create 20 lakh jobs, says Prithviraj Chavan

Spell out how, says NCP, social activists.

Spelling out details of the Industrial Policy of the Maharashtra Government, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Thursday said it would help the state rake in Rs 5 lakh crore in five years and generate 20 lakh jobs.

The policy also aims at creating Integrated Industrial Areas and allowing MIDC zones an extra Floor Space Index (FSI) of 0.5 for expansion.

"We have drafted the policy to maintain Maharashtra's status as a leading investment destination in the country. The policy has been drafted considering inputs of all leading industrialists and addressing the drawbacks of the 2006 policy," Chavan told reporters here.

Apart from allowing conversion of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) into Integrated Industrial Areas, the policy spelled out details for development of existing Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) zones by granting an extra FSI of 0.5.

"The growth of many existing units in MIDC areas is constrained due to lack of space. We have decided to grant additional FSI of 0.5 above the basic FSI in all MIDC areas," Industries Secretary Manu Kumar Srivasssstava said.

As part of the policy, the government is also planning to create secondary growth corridors along the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor. Three growth corridors, the Mumbai-Nashik-Aurangabad-Amravati-Nagpur; Mumbai-Pune-Satara-Sangli-Solapur; and Mumbai-Ratnagairi-Sindhudurg, will also be created.

The state hopes these corridors will bring underdeveloped areas of Vidarbha, Marathwada and Konkan closer to growth centres like Mumbai and Pune. The policy will also lead to creation of a Critical Industrial Infrastructure Fund with a corpus of Rs 500 crore which will provide last-mile infrastructure for MIDC areas.

The state is also planning to create reservations whereby 10 per cent of all new MIDC areas will be reserved for Micro and small industries of which 5 per cent will be reserved for women.

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