NEW DELHI: Phase-1 of the much-delayed Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) will be completed by 2019, according to Alkesh K Sharma, CEO and MD of DMIC Development Corporation. “Work in DMIC has reached an advanced stage. We have started land allotment in four cities,” Sharma told Express on the sidelines of the recently concluded 42nd joint meeting of India-Japan Business Cooperation Committee.
DMIC, the ambitious $90-billion project, was introduced in 2006 when India and Japan signed a Memorandum of Understanding. Aimed at creating a trade corridor between Delhi and Mumbai running through six states, DMIC was expected to complete it in three phases over nine years starting from January 2008. Owing to numerous reasons, the project is running behind schedule. The revised deadlines for phase 2 and 3 are 2027 and 2037, respectively.
Sharma said `14,000-15,000 crore has been invested in the project so far and DMIC expects a healthy return. “Every acre will attract investments worth `3-4 crore and we have identified 30,000-35,000 acres of land. Companies from Japan, India and other countries have invested,” Sharma said.The companies will get 24x7 electricity, easy land allotment and environment clearance in advance, he added. The fright corridor, once operational, is expected to bring down logistic charges significantly. At present, it is 14 per cent of the GDP while the government’s objective is to bring it down to 10 per cent.
Other than developing the 1,500-km long western dedicated freight corridor, DMIC includes 24 industrial regions, eight smart cities, two international airports, five power projects, two mass rapid transit systems, and two logistical hubs. Sharma noted that these multi-billion dollar projects usually take 25-30 year to complete and work only gets started when lands are identified.“Plan for Amritsar-Kolkata has been completed. The second corridor to be developed will be the CBIC and work has picked up speed,” Sharma said, adding that if everything goes on in full swing, it will be completed in the same time frame along with the DMIC.