The Maharashtra government has identified Dighi in Raigad district as the preferred location for a mega greenfield shipbuilding cluster estimated at over Rs 20,000 crore, with state-run Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited being approached to serve as the anchor shipyard.
Mumbai Port Authority and the Maharashtra government have formed an equal special purpose vehicle to develop the project, responsible for building common infrastructure on land and the waterfront. A Detailed Project Report and feasibility study for the Dighi site is currently being prepared.
Once the anchor shipyard is finalised, the cluster will be supported under the Union government’s Shipbuilding Development Scheme, allocated Rs 19,989 crore. The scheme offers 100 per cent capital assistance as a grant for eligible infrastructure including breakwaters, tide-independent basins, wave breakers, channel and basin development, land reclamation and common maritime assets.
The proposed cluster will be developed as a plug-and-play industrial hub hosting a complete shipbuilding and repair ecosystem, with a waterfront of approximately 2 km and a landside area of around 2,000 acres. It will include one or more large shipyards with a combined capacity of about 1.2 million gross tonnage per annum, along with ancillary industries covering engine manufacturing, steel and component fabrication, shipboard machinery and allied units.
The initiative aligns with India’s broader maritime manufacturing strategy, targeting a 40-fold increase in shipbuilding output to 4.5 million gross tonnage by 2037.
