Building on the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor model, the Union government is planning to set up two industrial and manufacturing corridors in the eastern and southern regions to increase the industrial production and manufacturing output, said union minister for commerce and industry Anand Sharma.

He also announced that seven industrial zones would be set across the country including one in the Southern state of Andhra Pradesh. These will have a mega industrial zones and an integrated township to promote innovation and industry. These zones will have the potential for employing 43 million people.

The government is working with a plan to create one million jobs to increase the share of manufacturing in the GDP to 26 per cent from the present 16 per cent in a decade.

Speaking at the international partnership summit organised by Andhra Pradesh government to attract investors, he said these were capital-intensive projects and would help in raising the sagging industrial output.

The ambitious corridor projects will dovetail innovation and frugal production to achieve cost efficiencies. These have drawn inspiration from the industrial hubs in in China and South Korea and have the potential to revolutionise the country`s urban landscape with smart city concepts.

The DMIC corridor will be developed at a cost of $90 billion with Japan providing the technical support. Regional economic partnerships among SAARC countries will be crucial for the success of these huge projects, he said adding that India has designed a national manufacturing policy to be a game changer.

“The economies in Asia are moving towards economic integration. In two years from now, the GDPs of the Asian countries will correct themselves and those of Europe and the US will be equal sized,” Sharma said.

Emerging economies like India, China, Brazil, Japan and Africa will show the way forward in the current economic crisis, he said adding that developed nations should shed the protectionist attitudes as they will be counter productive.

“Multi-lateral agreements will be important to address the distortions and imbalances that are weighing against the developed countries. US and Europe must shed their protectionist attitudes; that will be a major contribution to the world,” Sharma said.