On March 18, the Union Cabinet approved the scheme for developing 100 plug-and-play industrial parks across the country.
It aims to develop world-class industrial infrastructure, unlock manufacturing potential and drive the country’s economic growth.
“We want to make sure that the scheme does become the change agent in terms of promoting investments across India in industry.
“We can see a lot of interest from industry already and I do believe that the Rs 34,000 crore that the government is earmarking for these 100 industrial parks in a plug and play mode will help catalyse large amount of investments, crate significant jobs, provide modern social infra on these parks, and demonstrate centre-state partnership as its best,” Goyal said here while launching a portal to roll out the scheme.
Applicants can submit their applications through the portal.
The scheme will adopt a competitive model under which states will be encouraged to submit detailed project proposals highlighting their industrial strengths, availability of land, investor interest, and sectoral potential.He said the government will work closely with industry to identify the most suitable sectors and infrastructure requirements for each location, whether for chemicals, manufacturing, data centres or other industries.
Land for the parks will be provided by the states, while the Government of India will support infrastructure creation through the National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC), which will partner with states under a 51:49 model.
He said the objective is to create plug-and-play industrial parks focused on industries best suited to specific locations.
The government, Goyal said, will also explore earmarking areas for startups, deep-tech enterprises, technology-oriented businesses, research and development activities, and innovation-led enterprises.
He added that efforts will be made to establish modern testing facilities in partnership with institutions such as BIS, Export Inspection Agency, and FSSAI so that investors have access to advanced testing infrastructure within the parks.
The minister said the possibility of creating dedicated international enclaves in partnership with countries such as Japan, Singapore, the Republic of Korea and Switzerland could be explored to facilitate investment and provide a familiar environment for expatriate professionals working in India.
Applications received on the portal between June 1 and July 31 would be for the first phase of 20 parks, while a further 30 parks would be taken up based on applications received up to September 30 this year.
Subsequent phases would be implemented based on the experience and learnings from the initial rounds.