Lucknow, Jul 2 (KNN) In a significant boost to India's defence manufacturing sector, the Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor (UPDIC) has attracted investments totalling Rs 25,000 crore, state officials announced on Tuesday.

This ambitious project, spanning six nodes across Uttar Pradesh, is expected to generate employment for approximately 40,000 youth in the coming years.

The Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA), the nodal agency overseeing the project, revealed that 154 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) have been inked thus far.

Of these, 129 are industrial agreements, while 25 are institutional partnerships, highlighting the project's comprehensive approach to defence manufacturing and related sectors.

The six nodes of the UPDIC are strategically located in Agra, Aligarh, Lucknow, Kanpur, Chitrakoot, and Jhansi, leveraging the state's existing industrial infrastructure and skilled workforce.

This geographic spread is designed to ensure balanced regional development and maximise the project's economic impact across Uttar Pradesh.

In a promising sign of continued growth, UPEIDA officials disclosed that an additional 87 MoUs are currently under evaluation, indicating sustained investor interest in the corridor.

Land acquisition, often a challenging aspect of large-scale industrial projects in India, appears to be progressing smoothly. UPEIDA has already acquired over 1,600 hectares of land for the project.

Notably, more than 700 hectares have been allocated to 42 industrial groups, signalling the project's transition from planning to implementation phase.

The UPDIC is part of the broader national initiative to establish defence industrial corridors, aimed at bolstering India's indigenous defence manufacturing capabilities and reducing dependence on imports.

The project aligns with the central government's "Make in India" and "Atmanirbhar Bharat" (Self-Reliant India) campaigns.

Industry experts view this development as a potential game-changer for Uttar Pradesh's industrial landscape. The project is expected to not only create direct employment but also foster a robust ecosystem of small and medium enterprises supporting the defence sector.

(KNN Bureau)