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Maharashtra has a strong financial infrastructure which is its biggest asset. It serves as home to the chief financial institutions such as the Bombay Stock Exchange, National Stock Exchange and the Reserve Bank of India are based here. Even big industry giants namely Tata Group, the AV Birla Group and Reliance have their flagship companies in Maharashtra. More than 90 percent of merchant banking transactions are carried out in Mumbai and the state also accounts for 14 percent of the national bank deposits. Maharashtra also enjoys the largest share of the total foreign direct investment and foreign collaborations. GSDP at current prices in 2006-2007 stood at US$ 124.23 billion. Key industries include financial services, textiles, auto-ancillaries, chemical and allied products, electrical and non-electrical machinery, petroleum and allied products. Wine, jewellery, pharmaceuticals, engineering goods, media and entertainment, etc.
Source: Annual Survey of Industries 2002-03
Key industries
Chemicals, Petrochemicals, Oil & GasMaharashtra has a well developed chemical and petrochemicals sector that has been doing extremely well on the economic front. The strength areas of this industry in Maharashtra are its strong manufacturing base, low cost of operations and a well developed laboratory and R&D infrastructure. There is a strong resource pool and backward linkages with the well-developed chemicals and petrochemicals sector serves as an added advantage. All major domestic and number of global chemicals & petrochemicals players have a presence in the state. Some of the names are Hindustan Petroleum, Bharat Petroleum, Reliance Industries, Indo-Rama Synthetics.
Maharashtra has a strong presence in the chemicals, petrochemicals, and oil and gas sector. After the installation of India's offshore oil wells near Mumbai in 1976, the industry has seen tremendous growth and it accounts for nearly 27.4 per cent of the country’s chemicals, petrochemicals and oil and gas output. The state also accounts for 18.2 percent of the country's employment in this sector. Opportunities in the chemical sector are mainly in the areas of polymers and plastics, fertilizers and synthetic yarns. Maharashtra contributes for almost 15 per cent of the total production of basic petrochemical products manufactured during 2006-2007, second to Gujarat (62 per cent).
PharmaceuticalsThe state accounts for 40 per cent of the country's pharmaceuticals output. It has strong research capabilities and has a contribution of almost 30 percent in the nation's total patents. There are ample opportunities in the pharmaceutical sector mainly in the areas of contract research, contract manufacturing and clinical trials. Some of the well known players focussing on this sector having their base in Maharashtra are Wockhardt, Nicholas Piramal, Cipla, Johnson & Johnson. and GlaxoSmithKline.
It is expected that the industry will grow to US$ 25 billion by 2010, representing an annual growth rate of over 25 per cent.The state's competitive strengths in the sector include low costs, strong manufacturing base, well-developed laboratory and R&D infrastructure and a strong resource pool. The backward linkage with the well-developed chemicals and petrochemicals sector is an added advantage.
Automobiles & Auto componentsMaharashtra accounts for 38 per cent of the country's output of automobiles. 40 per cent of the total workforce engaged in the automobile industry is from this state. The key factors responsible for the fast progress of this sector is the presence of well established players and the presence of a strong engineering sector. there is amply supply of skilled labour and the infrastructure for transportation is fantastic. Every segment of the sector including two and three wheelers, passenger cars and commercial vehicles is represented in the state. The prime automobile centers in the state include Pune, Nashik, Aurangabad and Nagpur. Pune has the flagship of many of the leading automobile companies like Bajaj Auto Ltd, Daimler Chrysler Ltd, TELCO, Fiat, Skoda Auto, John Dierre, Tata Motors, Kinetic Engineering, Cummins and Bharat Forge. etc. Nashik is home to India's largest multi utility vehicle manufacturer, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.
EngineeringMaharashtra has a major contribution in both the production and export of the engineering goods in the country. The engineering industry in Maharashtra is extremely diversified and produces a wide range of engineering products from industrial machinery to industrial castings and forgings. The industry was earlier confined to the Mumbai-Pune belt but has now spread to other areas as well. The main manufacturing centres are based in Nagpur, Aurangabad, Nasik and Kolhapur. Some of the reputed engineering companies in Maharashtra are Atul Electro Formers Pvt. Ltd., Kam-AvidaEnviro Engineers Pvt. Ltd., Mahavir Group of Industries, Hylo Transmissions Pvt. Ltd. and Legend Communications Pvt. Ltd. The major engineering items of production and exports in Maharashtra are Textile mill machinery, machinery for sugar cement plants, sugar, cement, and chemical plants, food processing machinery, tractors electric power machinery, transmission line towers, automobiles and ship and ship buildings.
AgricultureAgriculture is the mainstay of the state of Maharashtra. The main food crops are mangoes, grapes, bananas, oranges, wheat, rice, jowar, bajra and pulses. Cash crops include groundnut, cotton, sugarcane, turmeric, and tobacco. 16 percent of its area is under irrigation. The total irrigated area, which has been used for crop cultivation, is 33,500 sq km. To promote exports of fresh and processed agricultural produce, the Government of India has announced the creation of Agri Export Zones (AEZs). The state has identified eight potential horticultural crops of commercial importance for AEZs.
Financial servicesMumbai is the principal financial services centre of the country. The apex financial institution, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), is located at Mumbai. The city houses the two largest stock exchanges, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE), controlling over 95 per cent of the volume in the Indian equities market. Mumbai also has a major presence of domestic and foreign banks operating in the country. Mumbai's status as the principal financial centre has enabled Maharashtra to attract a large number of foreign banks and other financial institutions.
A recent spin-off from the strong presence of global financial services firms in Mumbai is the establishment of their global research and back office base in and around Mumbai. Morgan Stanley, HSBC and JP Morgan have set up such operations in Mumbai.
IT/ITESMaharashtra contributes over 30 per cent of the country's total export of software. The state houses more than 1,200 software units. Maharashtra government is striving to build a good IT related infrastructure, offer fiscal incentives to IT players in the state and ensure IT in governance and institutional framework for the IT sector. To boost the Information Technology sector of the state, several IT parks have been set up.
Prominent IT players present in the state include Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys Technologies, Wipro, Patni Computers, i-Flex Technologies, Veritas. BPO centres of large national and international players have also come up in a big way in the state. These include LG, HSBC, Aviva, vCustomer, Xansa, EDS and e-Gain, among others.
Maharashtra possesses distinct competitive advantages that facilitate further development of the IT/ITES sector in the state. These include:
- 40 per cent of India's Internet users
- 35 per cent of PC penetration in the country
- 169,000 trained technical personnel added to the manpower pool each year
- Development of a large number of IT parks in both the public and private sector
The Government has undertaken a number of initiatives to promote further development of IT/ITES sector in the state. The steps include formulation of a progressive sector-specific policy, development of IT parks and the knowledge corridor.
Mumbai-Pune Knowledge Corridor:
Unique Features
- A six lane, dual carriage expressway between the two cities
- Optical-fibre cable link provided between the two cities
- Six major IT parks set-up in the two cities, three each in Mumbai and Pune, providing world-class IT infrastructure
Mumbai and Pune provide the best infrastructure in terms of housing, education, transport and electricity.
TextilesCotton is available in bulk in Maharashtra which is one of the key factors that have enabled the state to establish a competitive edge. Maharashtra accounts for about 65 million kg of cotton production, which is 19 per cent of the country’s total production, and 272 million kg of cotton yarn, which is 12 per cent of the total production in India. There is no dearth of skilled workforce for the textile industry. The installation capacity of the state is about 1.66 million spindles that forms around 17 percent of the total capacity of the country. The government of Maharashtra is taking suitable measures to strengthen its textile sector by establishing textile parks at Nagpur, Dhule and Ambernath. Some of the key players from the textile industry having their base in Maharashtra are Bombay Dyeing, Century Textiles and Raymond. Raymond is planning to increased its denim manufacturing capacity at Yavatmal from 20 million metres per annum to 30 million metres. Carrera Holding Inc proposes to set up a green-field textile project with an estimated investment of $130 million at Kolhapur. Nine Textile/ Apparel SEZs are planned in the state.
The phasing out of the export quota is expected to provide a fillip to the textile industry in the country. With the global trade in textile and clothing expected to grow from US$ 356 billion at present to US$ 600 billion by 2010, the state has an opportunity to leverage its existing strengths to capture a larger share of the textile market.
Textile Parks in Maharashtra
- Nardhana Textile Park, Dhule
- Butibori (Nagpur) Textile Park
- Ambernath Textile Park
Potential hubs for investment
In addition to its present areas of strength, a number of sectors are emerging with substantial potential for private investment. The most prominent among these are leisure & tourism, biotechnology and food processing.
TourismThe Indian travel and tourism industry is expected to grow by 8.8 per cent per annum (in real terms) to generate US$ 90.4 billion by 2014. The total capital investment will increase from US$ 10.2 billion in 2004 to US$ 21.4 billion in 2014. The Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) recorded 100 per cent increase in revenues from INR 3.81 crore in 2005 to INR 6.57 crore in 2006-2007. MTDC is working on innovative schemes to tap the tourism potential.
The state has a large untapped tourism potential, with diverse offerings including beaches, forts, hill stations, heritage and sanctuaries. The notable attractions include Mahabaleshwar, Ajanta, Ellora, Elephanta and Murud-Janjira, among others. Maharashtra's key advantage is the fact that Mumbai serves as the entry point for 40 per cent of the international tourists arriving in India. Mumbai's connectivity to key tourist destinations in the state and availability of adequate tourist accommodation are other factors that favour development of tourism in the state.
The state has come up with a progressive tourism policy to foster the development of the sector. It has decided to develop a hill station near Pune by 2010 with an investment of over US$ 400 million. In 2004, Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) introduced a special luxury train named 'Deccan Odyssey' with an investment of over US$ 8 million.
Leisure & EntertainmentThe Media and Entertainment industry in India is essentially based in Maharashtra. Mumbai is the nerve centre of the widely popular Hindi film industry, and Pune serves as the key centre for the entertainment industry. Mumbai houses the country's first Imax dome theatre. The famous film studios like Film City in Goregaon, Natraj in Andheri, and RK Studio in Chembur are all located in Mumbai. The renowned Film and Television Institute (FTII) is located in Pune. Established in 1960 on the erstwhile Prabhat studio premises, the FTII is one of the oldest and finest institutes in the field of training in film making and television programme production.
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