As we meet today, on 5 September, Maharashtra has surpassed Singapore, the UAE and several other economies in terms of economic scale. Our economy has crossed $660 billion, and we are among the world's 30 largest economies. We are now at the 29th position. That is the scale at which the state is beginning to operate. We have also recorded a growth rate of 8.8% in the last quarter, a record figure, with the possibility of reaching double-digit growth. If we compare Maharashtra with Singapore in Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) terms, Maharashtra has crossed US$2.75 trillion. That is a substantial scale for a single state. Maharashtra accounts for approximately 14% of India's GDP and around 30% of its foreign direct investment. The state is also growing considerably in terms of per capita income. If we look at fiscal discipline, Maharashtra is among the best-administered states, with a relatively low debt burden. Our fiscal deficit is also around 2.7%.

Maharashtra's investment conversion rate is approximately 70%, demonstrating our focus on moving commitments towards implementation.

Over the last six to seven years, Maharashtra has attracted US$107 billion in FDI. Approximately 40% of this has come through financial and other services. Singapore remains our largest source of FDI, followed by countries including Malaysia and the United States. We are pursuing the ambition of building a trillion-dollar economy while targeting an aggressive growth trajectory. Our services sector is also growing at approximately 12–13%, and we are planning for the long term. Over the past 18 months, beginning in 2025, we have attracted investments worth approximately Rs.35 lakh crore, and nearly 75% of these investments have already moved into the implementation stage. With investments of Rs.17 lakh crore, we are looking at the creation of 50 lakh employment opportunities. If we examine the net addition to EPF registrations last year, Maharashtra added approximately 42 lakh new accounts, accounting for 23% of the country's total additions. This indicates that employment is increasingly becoming formalised.

We are also taking pride in the state's growing social and economic integration.

Maharashtra has established Invest Maharashtra, a Section 8 company, with an allocation of C3,000 crore and a further C1,000 crore for a catalytic fund. Through this fund, we can invest in equity or convertible instruments to support promising innovations, start-ups and businesses operating in high-potential growth sectors.

Our current policy framework also gives the services sector the same importance as manufacturing. Traditionally, incentives have been concentrated on manufacturing, even though services depend equally on a strong ecosystem of talent, intellectual property, education, skills and a STEM-ready workforce. Under the Maharashtra Industries, Investment and Services Policy 2025 (MIISP 2025), notified on 31 December 2025, services are being brought on a more equal footing with manufacturing. We are integrating approximately 14 service sectors into this framework. Education, wellness and several other sectors are now covered under the incentive structure.

Power is another major component of our investment proposition. Mumbai is increasingly being positioned as a data-centre capital, not only for India but also for the wider Asia-Pacific region. The state currently has an installed power-generation capacity of approximately 61 gigawatts, the largest of any state. Of this, nearly 40 gigawatts comes from the private sector. Over the next four years, our energy mix is expected to change significantly. On a consumption basis, green energy is projected to account for more than 40% of our power supply. By 2031, we expect more than half of the electricity consumed across Maharashtra to come from green sources, rising to approximately 70% by 2035.

With investments of Rs.17 lakh crore, we are looking at the creation of 50 lakh employment opportunities.

That is the energy transition roadmap we are pursuing.

The state is also developing one of the largest decentralised solar initiatives, designed to supply agricultural feeders across approximately 1,600 locations, with projects involving capacities of around 16 megawatts. Maharashtra is also developing a dedicated space technology policy and establishing defence, nuclear technology, aerospace and space technology corridors, referred to as the DNA corridors.

Our industrial policy is an umbrella framework supported by 26 additional policies. These cover areas such as electronics, silicon and semiconductor manufacturing, biotechnology, bioengineering, green energy, integrated textiles, defence, aerospace and electronic components. We are also developing a policy for magnet manufacturing.

We are giving each sector a distinct policy framework so that we do not overlook even the smallest but strategically important component of the industrial ecosystem.

The conversion of memorandum of understanding into actual investments is another area in which Maharashtra has performed strongly. In many emerging economies, a conversion rate of around 25% is considered respectable, while 10% may be regarded as a baseline. Maharashtra has consistently performed well above these levels. Looking at the Industry Department alone, we signed investment agreements worth approximately Rs.33 lakh crore over the past five years. Including investments facilitated by agencies such as Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and other regional development authorities, the overall figure approaches Rs.50 lakh crore.

This investment trajectory began gaining momentum in 2025. We now sign approximately 50–60 memoranda of understanding in a typical period, while ensuring that investment is distributed across the state. Of course, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Pune remain major investment centres. However, the opportunities extend well beyond them. Nagpur has attracted proposals worth approximately Rs.4.7 lakh crore, the Konkan region, excluding the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, around Rs.3.84 lakh crore, Pune approximately Rs.2 lakh crore, and Nashik close to Rs.70,000 crore.

Beyond the larger agreements, Maharashtra has signed more than 10,000 memoranda of understanding worth approximately Rs.20 lakh crore, with proposed employment of around 10 lakh people. These figures reflect the stated employment commitments, although the eventual impact could be greater when indirect employment is taken into account.

We are also working to transform regions that have historically faced economic and security challenges. Chandrapur and Gadchiroli, for instance, are gradually moving towards greater industrial activity and economic development. Five years ago, the prospect of major industrial investment in Gadchiroli would have appeared unlikely. Today, the region has attracted close to 40 projects. Several leading steel companies are expected to establish operations there.

We are looking beyond Mumbai and Pune to bring more regions into the state's growth story. For instance, a final assembly line for training aircraft is proposed for the Other District Road region. We are also promoting inclusive development through the concept of emerging districts. Twelve districts have been identified for high-impact interventions because they possess considerable economic potential but have historically lagged behind the national average on certain development indicators. We aim to establish at least 25 high-impact projects in each of these districts. Government incentives could extend up to 150%, with additional incentives of approximately 5–10% for qualifying projects that promote greater women's participation. These districts are targeting growth rates of around 15% over the next five years. We plan to invest approximately Rs.3 lakh crore in these regions over the coming four years.

Another major opportunity lies in data centres.

Data-centre projects are being developed or implemented across Navi Mumbai, Kalamboli, Mumbai, Raigad, Nagpur, Thane and Pune, among other locations. Nagpur alone has approximately 50 projects at various stages.

The proposed data-centre capacity is expected to reach around 27 gigawatts, with the potential for further expansion. This requires a substantial supporting electricity network. The government is therefore developing an extensive transmission and distribution infrastructure, including approximately 70–80 additional substations, comprising extra-high-voltage and 220 kV facilities. The investment in this infrastructure is essential if we are to support the projected demand. Based on our current plans, we expect to be able to accommodate substantially greater capacity over the next 30 months. Resilience and redundancy are essential to a data-centre ecosystem. The overall investment associated with this ecosystem could reach approximately Rs.16 lakh crore. Over the next decade, the sector could attract investment exceeding US$300 billion, subject to the proposed projects and their implementation. Amazon Web Services alone has committed approximately US$8.9 billion, a significant commitment to the state's digital infrastructure.

We are also ensuring that sustainability remains central to this expansion. The data centres we are encouraging will increasingly rely on green electricity, with an emphasis on sourcing between 70% and 100% of their power from renewable sources, depending on the applicable requirements and incentives. Renewable electricity consumption must also be appropriately tracked and verified. The intention is to build a substantial green data-centre ecosystem, with an ambitious capacity target of around 30 gigawatts.

There are concerns that data centres could consume excessive amounts of electricity and water, affecting other users. We are conscious of these concerns. Our approach is to build sustainable facilities that use resources responsibly and minimise their environmental impact. Over time, we want to ensure that industrial development and ecological priorities can coexist, supporting the continued presence of flamingos and other wildlife in the region. This is the sustainability commitment that must accompany our digital infrastructure ambitions.

Maharashtra already accounts for a substantial share of India's data-centre capacity, and we expect further growth by 2029–30. The scale of this digital infrastructure places three priorities firmly on every board's agenda.

1. Data governance and data localisation.

2. Energy and water security for large-scale computing workloads.

3. Cyber resilience and operational continuity.

These are not merely technical considerations. They are matters of strategic governance and long-term institutional resilience. For directors, therefore, the question is not simply one of scale. It is also one of predictability. As I mentioned earlier, Maharashtra's investment conversion rate is approximately 70%, demonstrating our focus on moving commitments towards implementation. Our single-window platform, MAITRI 2.0, integrates approximately 120 services across 16 departments. Unlike systems in which single-window clearance is confined largely to major industrial projects, our platform seeks to support businesses across the spectrum, from micro-enterprises to large-scale investments.

We are here to support the state's next phase of growth. This includes steel and data centres in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, semiconductor fabrication in the Mumbai and Pune regions, and export opportunities under the relevant trade agreements. Ultimately, these investments will be built by companies prepared to commit long-term capital and operate within a framework of sound governance.

Governance quality must be viewed as an investment variable, not a compliance overhead.