Maharashtra Budget: Infra In Focus With Rs 86,000-Crore Nagpur-Goa Highway, Metro Expansions In Mumbai, Pune

Plans were also announced to expand Mumbai's metro-railway system from Navi Mumbai to Santa Cruz via a metro rail line that will run from the Navi Mumbai International Airport near Ulwe to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Santa Cruz and back.

The Maharashtra government also plans to designate the Mumbai Metropolitan Region as a "growth zone" and plans to take the value of the economy from $140 billion to $1.5 trillion by 2047.

Pawar also announced a "Logistics Policy" for the construction of dedicated logistics infrastructure spanning over 10,000 acres. The budget aims to create approximately 5 lakh direct and indirect jobs through special incentives and facilities offered to infrastructure projects.

The administration has also commenced land acquisition for the construction of the Nagpur-Goa Shaktipeeth Expressway, for which an amount of Rs 86,300 crore has been allocated.

The budget also proposed plans to construct Mumbai's third airport near Vadhavan port near the Maharashtra-Gujarat border. This will be built close to a Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train station.

An elevated road will also be constructed from Thane to Navi Mumbai International Airport. The two suburbs of Kalyan and Dombivli are expected to benefit from this connectivity.

The budget also announced the construction of a Savarkar Sea Bridge, which will be 14 km long between Bandra and Versova with a planned investment of Rs 18,120 crore allocated to the project. The expected time period by which the project is to be completed is May 2028.

The state government has also submitted proposals to the Union government regarding the expansion of Pune Metro Rail Phase-2 which will cover two routes, Khadakwasla to Kharadi and Nal Stop to Manikbag.

An elevated road project linking the coastal towns of Uttan and Virar, spanning 55 km is set to be constructed for approximately Rs 87,427 crore.

In the coming year, 41.2 km of metro lines are set to be launched in Mumbai and 23.2 km in Pune. The government also plans to operationalise a total of 237.5 km of lines in the next five years.