‘On what basis is Mumbai an investor-friendly city?’

Even before the 1990s, when the country’s economic policies were not as liberal as they are now, Maharashtra had retained its number one position in industrial sector, by banking entirely on Mumbai.

The real challenge for the state government came after the Centre liberalised the economy, when several states began developing local infrastructure to attract FDI. What compounded the problems for Maharashtra was the problem of plenty in Mumbai, and its inability to develop the rest of the state in the pace it should have in the last ten years.

BJP leader Devendra Phadnavis said, “In the last year, our exports have gone down by Rs80,000 crore. On what basis are we projecting Mumbai or the rest of Maharashtra as the most investor-friendly state? Whether it is the power sector, road connectivity, port development or sealink projects, none of them have been accomplished in the last ten years.”

Even the state Planning Commission’s deputy chairman, Ratnakar Mahajan, in his annual report expressed concerns over the urban and rural divide because of poor policy decisions made by the state government. The Planning Commission report urged the state to initiate immediate corrective measures to develop holistic policies instead of following the piece-meal approach to attract investors or achieve economic growth.

The vice-chancellor of Pune University and noted economist Narendra Jadhav admitted that the state had the potential to achieve its ambitious economic goals. Jadhav said that with some course correction, Mumbai would be the ideal city for international financial hub. After all, India’s two largest stock exchanges and major banks are headquartered in Mumbai. Moreover, the city alone accounts for over 40 per cent of India’s revenue and over five per cent of country’s GDP. 

However, Phadnavis argued, “The image of Mumbai over the years has taken a nose dive. When Mumbai gets submerged every time it rains, it tarnishes the city’s global image a little at a time. It only shows that the city is going from bad to worse. If this is the infrastructure in Mumbai then image the situation in rest of state.” 

Those challenging the government’s tall claims said that Deshmukh’s promises were all on paper.

A senior secretary in the urban development department said, “Politics hamper planned development. Even in the airport expansion project, there appears to be a lack of political will to expedite the process by taking some firm decisions. The Congress-NCP regime is so caught up in vote bank politics that it doesn’t have a uniform migration policy. On what basis are they planning the townships and dreaming of 10-12 per cent economic growth?”