7 business centres to come up in Mumbai; city to have USD 1.5 trillion economy

At least seven business centres of international standard will be established in Mumbai to boost the citys economy from the present USD 140 billion to USD 15 trillion by 2047 Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar announced in the state budget on MondayPawar who tabled the budget for the fiscal 202526 in the state assembly said the Mumbai Metropolitan Region will be developed as a growth hub and an internationalstandard economic development centreHe said business centres will be established at the BandraKurla Complex BKC the KurlaWorli area Wadala Goregaon Navi Mumbai Kharghar and the VirarBhoisar areaThe minister further said that the state government has a 26 per cent share in the Vadhavan port which is being constructed at the cost of Rs 76220 croreThe port will have an annual cargo handling capacity of approximately 300 million metric tonnes three times the capacity of the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust JNPT he saidThe Vadhavan port is expected to commence cargo operations by 2030 Pawar said adding that the third airport for Mumbai and the MumbaiAhmedabad bullet train station will be established near the portHe said the port will also be connected to the MumbaiNagpur Samruddhi ExpresswayThe state government will also announce a policy to provide financial incentives for modern and wellequipped boats to ensure safe travel from the Gateway of India to Mandwa and ElephantaPawar said the metro project connecting the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai to Navi Mumbai International Airport is set to commence soonHe said the newly developed Navi Mumbai International Airport at Ulwe covering 1160 hectares will have the capacity to handle 90 million passengers and 26 million tonnes of cargo annuallyAbout 85 per cent of the work is completed and test flights have successfully been conducted the minister said adding that domestic flight operations are planned to commence in AprilPawar said 644 km of metro lines will be inaugurated with 412 km in Mumbai and 232 km in Pune in the next financial year while 2375 km of metro lines will be operational in the next five yearsDr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport in Nagpur is being upgraded and modernised through private participation and this will increase passenger and cargo capacityIt will boost Vidarbhas economic development he saidThe government has plans to start passenger services at Amravati airport by this months end while the survey and exploration work for a new airport in Gadchiroli is in progress and funds will be provided for the expansion of Akola airport