DELHI-MUMBAI

INDUSTRIAL
CORRIDOR
(DMIC)
THROUGH THE LENS OF DIFFERENT PLANNING
TRAJECTORIES

Ihsan Ki M2022UPG004
Divyanshi Arora- M2023UPG002
Nidhi Chandrikapure- M2023UPG014
The Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) is a flagship
infrastructure project aiming to develop a high-tech industrial
zone across six Indian states. Spanning 1,504 km, it integrates
smart cities, industrial hubs, and transportation networks along
the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor, significantly enhancing
manufacturing, trade, and economic growth in the region.

Spanning over seven states: Delhi, Uttar Pradesh,

Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and
Maharashtra.

The proximity to ports such as JNPT (Mumbai) and Mundra

(Gujarat) facilitates exports, making the DMIC region an
attractive destination for manufacturing and trade.
Origins and Conception

The idea of the DMIC project was first discussed in

2005, following the signing of a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) between the Government of
India and the Government of Japan.

The formal conceptualization of the project took place

during Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh's
visit to Japan in December 2006. This visit resulted in
the creation of a collaborative framework between the
two countries, with Japan agreeing to provide financial
and technical assistance for the project.
 Key Components
Industrial Areas and Investment Regions: The DMIC
includes 24 investment zones, with 16 industrial areas and
eight smart cities being developed. Each investment region
covers about 200 square kilometers, while the industrial
areas span 100 square kilometers.

Smart Cities: Eight smart cities are being developed, such as Dholera in Gujarat and Shendra
in Maharashtra, with modern infrastructure and smart technology integration.

Transportation Infrastructure: The corridor includes a new eight-lane expressway, high-speed

rail line, Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems, and several logistics hubs. The Delhi-Mumbai
Expressway, currently under construction, is expected to reduce travel time between the two
cities from 24 to 12 hours.
 Current status of project
Infrastructure Development: Core infrastructure in several smart cities, industrial areas, and logistics
hubs is in advanced stages of completion. Notable developments include the Dholera Special
Investment Region in Gujarat, which is progressing rapidly, and the Shendra-Bidkin Industrial Area in
Maharashtra, where operations have begun.
Highway & Rail Connectivity: The Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC), a key component of the
DMIC, is nearing completion, with most sections expected to be fully operational by 2025.
Smart Cities: The smart cities planned under the DMIC, like Dholera and Shendra-Bidkin, are in various
stages of development, with essential infrastructure such as roads, utilities, and ICT systems being
implemented.
Completion Timeline: Several projects are already partially operational, while others are expected to
be completed by 2025, aligning with the completion of the WDFC and expressways like the Delhi-
Mumbai Expressway​
 Planning via Mega Projects
The DMIC’s trajectory reflects a typical mega project. Initially conceived for
industrialization, it has expanded to include smart cities, infrastructure
development, and regional integration. The project’s trajectory also shows
how long-term infrastructure investments can stimulate urbanization, enhance
regional economic integration, and drive technological adoption.

The DMIC connects several states and cities, creating a network that
supports urbanization, regional development, and economic diversification.
By integrating industrial regions with transport and logistics hubs, the
project reshapes urban hierarchies and fosters regional connectivity.

Changes urban and regional dynamics, influencing land use, employment, and
migration patterns.
 Hybrid
Institutional
Governance
DMIC: Territorial Transformation
& State Restructuring
Manifestation of rolling out a neo liberal policy (1991)- proliferation of zones of
exception (SEZs)
Post 2008 financial crisis- Global growth coalition comprised of multilateral
development banks, private firms and banks, intergovernmental organizations, and
powerful nation-states embraced spatial planning
Failed to catalyze a broad-based transformation of economy and society, and the
overarching imperative of infrastructure-led development is to ‘get the territory right’
on a much larger scale.
Rise of state-coordinated spatial planning on a grand scale
Post-war spatial planning strategies, such as development corridors, growth poles and
new towns, have been resurrected to enroll vast spaces into ‘operational landscapes’
The realization of new territories of extraction, dedicated nodes of production,
logistical integration and new urban spaces such as so-called ‘logistics cities’,
necessitates state restructuring in order to facilitate the coordination of territorial
transformation.
Sub-National
Challenges in State Corridor development is about ‘getting the territory right’:
Restructuring as such, subnational governments have to be adept in the
assembly and delivery of significant parcels of land, and in
handling the political fall out this might generate.

Delhi–Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) in Gujarat, and

demonstrate that megaprojects present challenges that
require subnational governments to act in altered ways.
(Institutional & Political changes) These territorial visions require new institutional
arrangements and competences: here, subnational
governments need to restructure institutions to match
‘scaled-up’ developmental ambitions, ideally whilst
building on their existing institutional capacity.

States need to engage with the GoI’s overarching

rationale of the corridor, using this to build
legitimacy for accelerated development processes
that will inevitably produce losers as well as winners.
 State restructuring through the resurrection of coordinated inter-
State spatial planning

GoI sought to remedy the developmental shortcomings of this first round of neoliberal state restructuring through
the resurrection of coordinated inter-State spatial planning. The DMIC, announced in 2008,was this era’s first
development corridor and exemplifies this change.

It was planned by a joint Indian–Japanese Task Force, whose concept indicated the corridor’s headline aims: to
double employment, triple industrial output and quadruple exports within the project area.

Within this broad zone, a series of investment regions (minimum of 20,000 ha) and industrial areas (mini
mum of 10,000 ha) are planned, with public–private partnerships (PPPs) being the preferred model for delivery
for each.

Self-sustained Industrial townships with world class infrastructure: Modi’s Make in India & amendments to
RFCTLARR, 2016 ( 80% consent- to remove any blockages developers might face in the process of land
conversion)
Grounding the DMIC in Gujarat

In the new institutional structure, it is

clear that the earlier district-based and
SME-focused structure of GIDC offices
and district industries commissions has
been relegated to a second-tier
implementing role. While their ability to
physically plan new sites for industrial
and infrastructural projects are useful on
the ground support for the DMIC,
Gujarat’s entrepreneurial aspirations
have clearly moved on from brokering
deals between small-scale industrialists,
investors and landowners.
Miracle or mirage? The
Bharuch–Dahej PCPIR
DMIC’s most developed node in Gujarat: Speeding & scaling of
infrastructure led development
Exploitation of hydrocarbon resources (1992), GIDC began land
acquisition in 1992
1998- SEZ status
Taking advantage of the Dahej SEZ, the PCPIR was established in 2009,
greatly expanding the area for development to 453 km2. Chemical
processing and related industrial usages were planned to make up 50%
of the total land area, with the remainder dedicated to housing and
services. The newly designated Gujarat PCPIR Development Authority
was given control of this area.
GIDB now approves new developments put forward by the PCPIR
Development Authority across the whole of the special investment
region, although in practice, the GIDC continues to draw up detailed
plans and gain environmental clearance for individual developments
Financially however, PCPIR has not received the same level of State financial support as Dholera, despite being the special
investment region initially prioritized in national DMIC plans.

The GIDB and DMIC believe that since the PCPIR is already growing, there is no need to ‘divert’ their funds away from the more
difficult task of developing Dholera, an argument that undercuts the logic of developing the corridor as a growth engine.

The original SEZ now has 100% occupancy, but other areas are far from complete. The PCPIR’s territory incorporates 44 pre-
existing villages, and beyond them lies a patchwork of farmland; fenced-off but undeveloped sites; one or two completed formal
housing developments for industrial workers; and the labour ‘colonies’ that have been thrown up for construction workers.
These last are collections of temporary shacks, without electricity or toilets and are occupied by the migrant labourers who
make up the factory owners’ preferred workforce.

The panchayats (village councils) have had grazing land acquired by the state, and now that they have been amalgamated within
the PCPIR, residents have lost their rural status and with it the ability to access key welfare programmes (such the National
Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme).

Some evidence of ‘trickle down wealth’: new opportunities to rent houses to incomers, the occasional children’s park built as
part of industries’ corporate social responsibility packages or in the panchayats receiving some additional tax from the new
residents.
 Conflicts
The Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited
(DFCCIL) was set up as a company in 2006 under the administrative
control of the Ministry of Railways to mobilize financial resources,
and plan, construct, and maintain the operation of DFCs.
coordinating decision-making and necessary actions across six
states, as well as budget constraints of different states. Delays have
caused some of the potential investors to withdraw.
It is not clear what advantages would accrue by placing the
responsibility of development of investment regions and industrial
hubs (each of which falls under the jurisdiction of an individual
project state) on the DMICDC which has a cumbersome five-tier
interstate management structure.
 Planning And Resistence
Haryana:
More than 60 per cent of Haryana state comes under the project.
Four industrial nodes —
1. Manesar-Bawal Investment Region,
2. Faridabad-Palwal Investment Region,
3. Kundli-Sonepat Investment Region
4. Rewari-Hisar Investment Region.

Manesar-Bawal was one of the investment regions selected for

development in the first phase of the industrial corridor.
The Mandal-Becharaji Special Investment Region in Gujarat faced
intense opposition from 44 villages.
In 2014, fearing electoral backlash, Gujarat government cancelled land
acquisition in 36 villages.
Gujarat's Land Acquisition Strategy
Proactive and aggressive approach
Strategy designed to expedite land transfer for industrial and
real estate purposes
While minimizing potential protests and delays.
 Key elements of Gujarat's land acquisition strategy:

Pro-developer land reforms, that significantly eased the

process of transferring agricultural and common land for
industrial use.
This created a more favorable environment for developers and
investors.
Key project sites were designated as Special Investment
Regions (SIRs), removing them from the jurisdiction of elected
local governments.
This centralized decision-making authority, placing it directly
under the control of the Chief Minister.
Weakening of public participation in land
development processes
Weakened provisions for social cost mitigation.
This streamlined the land acquisition process but
raised concerns about transparency and
accountability.
Suppression of dissent: firm stance against activists
and protesters challenging land acquisitions.
Aimed to deter opposition and maintain project
momentum.
There was Zameen Samadhi Satyagarh in Rajasthan (Hindu 10 October
2017), corridor development projects such as the Delhi– Mumbai
Industrial Corridor (DMIC)
 References
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mirages and miracles: territorializing the Delhi–Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC)
and state restructuring in contemporary India. Territory, Politics, Governance,
11(3), 456-477.
Chattaraj, S. (2018). Infrastructure, Institutions and Industrialisation: The Delhi-
Mumbai Industrial Corridor and Regional Development in Gujarat and Uttar
Pradesh. Observer Research Foundation, 272.
Schindler, S., & Sharma, S. (2017). Delhi–Mumbai Industrial Corridor: Economic
and Environmental Consequences. Economic and Political Weekly, 12-16.
KHOSLA, R., & SONI, V. (2012). Delhi-Mumbai Corridor: A Water Disaster in the
Making? Economic and Political Weekly, 47(10), 15–17.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/41419924
Ramachandran, H. (2019). Review of industrial and development corridors in
India. Nova Delhi: Institute for Studies in Industrial Development.
Thank YOU