The Maharashtra government is formalising its drone sector strategy by establishing a dedicated task force and developing a comprehensive industrial ecosystem at AURIC, aiming to boost manufacturing, research, and innovation in the sector.
Maharashtra is moving to formalise its drone push with a dedicated task force and a sharper policy framework, after chief minister Devendra Fadnavis held a meeting in Mumbai with industry representatives on Thursday. According to the Free Press Journal, the government wants the new body, to be chaired by minister Ashish Shelar, to help put drone policy into practice, spread awareness of subsidies and schemes, and resolve bottlenecks faced by firms.
Fadnavis also called for what he described as a “Policy of Policies” for the sector, bringing together support for research and development, domestic component production, testing, patents and incentives from existing state programmes, the newspaper reported. The aim is to avoid fragmented support and create a single industrial framework for drones, which officials believe could accelerate investment and manufacturing.
A major part of the plan centres on AURIC, the industrial city at Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. The Indian Express reported earlier that the state had already begun work on a drone hub and manufacturing cluster there, with a committee under the Development Commissioner (Industries) asked to examine a proposal that included a special economic zone and supporting infrastructure. AURIC, developed as part of the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor, has been positioned as a greenfield smart industrial city with space for large-scale manufacturing.
The latest meeting appears to deepen that effort. The Free Press Journal said officials were directed to speed up the “Drone City” project at AURIC, explore a temporary incentive policy to make land available through the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation, and consider testing ranges and patent support for entrepreneurs. The chamber of Marathwada industries had pressed for the cluster, while the government has separately been promoting Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar as a broader manufacturing base, including for electric vehicles, helped by highway and corridor links. The combined approach suggests Maharashtra is trying to build a wider advanced-manufacturing ecosystem around AURIC rather than a single-sector project.
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