From being a little-known ancient port town situated at the Gulf of Khambhat, Dholera in the west Indian state of Gujarat, is now frequenting news headlines. After the first phase of the Delhi-Mumbai expressway opened last month, news reports wondering if the Dholera-Ahmedabad expressway was next to get a project-push may have raised some curiosity.

With the joint venture (JV) between electronics manufacturing giant Foxconn and commodities powerhouse Vedanta confirming their location of a semiconductor fab facility in the area, global investor attention is sure to follow.

Dholera Special Investment Region

Dholera Special Investment Region (referred to as Dholera SIR or DSIR) is located around 100km south of Ahmedabad and 130km away from Gandhinagar, the capital of Gujarat. It is poised to be a planned greenfield smart city spread over 920 km2 and divided into 12 zones and six sub-centers. Major industrial cities nearby are Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, and Varodara.

The DSIR project has highlighted the following factors to boost investment appeal:

Single window system for government-to-business (G2B) interactions, streamlining bureaucracy and approvals needed

Ease of doing business – ready list of permits by type of industry, single point of contact for all business services, fixed timeframe to grant approvals and permits

Competitive land pricing as per investment plan

Dedicated handholding support for the entire investment lifecycle

Fiscal support schemes and program

Greenfield projects at Dholera SIR

Dholera SIR is expected to vastly benefit from being an upcoming industrial node on the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC). The state of Gujarat hosts six out of 24 identified industrial nodes in the much-touted DMIC manufacturing zone. DMIC covers 1500km of area, connecting the country’s political capital, Delhi, and business capital, Mumbai.

Planned infrastructure projects coming up in the DSIR include an international airport near Navagam village, a solar park, expressway, metro connectivity, and freight railway line. The projects intend to build a world-class, sustainable, technology advanced, and self-sustaining urban-industrial zone at Dholera SIR.

Thrust sectors

At the outset, the Dholera SIR will benefit from proximity to mature industrial bases in the following industries:

Automobiles and auto components, electric vehicle components and battery manufacturing – Gujarat has among the highest share of automobile original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in India. Key auto clusters in the state are at Ahmedabad, Sanand, Halol, and Vadodara.

Aerospace and defense manufacturing – Gujarat state policy in this sector focuses on areas like defense engineering, artillery, ammunition, and small arms, automotive, shipbuilding, composites/defense technology fabric, casting and forging products, electronic systems, and maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO).

Capital goods and heavy engineering – Key heavy engineering and capital good manufacturing clusters at Ahmedabad, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Bharuch, Valsad, and Vadodara.

Electronic system design and manufacturing – Gujarat is an attractive electronic OEM and component manufacturing destination.

Food processing – Gujarat has 51 dairy plants, home to the ‘Amul’ brand, strong agri-base and raw material production, and support infrastructure like cold chain and logistics.

Pharmaceuticals and biotechnology – Gujarat hosts captive R&D units, contract R&D units, and established bulk drug clusters and contributes significantly to national sector turnover and exports.

Solar energy component manufacturing – Gujarat state has the highest installed solar capacity in India.?

Industrial setups in these and allied sectors will likely be incentivized by Dholera SIR authorities with fast-track approvals and permits issued.