Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh government said that a number of companies have shown interest in setting up plants in the state to make defence equipment. In February 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced Rs 20,000 crore defence industrial corridor in Bundelkhand – considered one of the most backward regions in the state. The corridor will have six nodes – Aligarh, Agra, Jhansi, Chitrakoot, Kanpur and Lucknow.

In a major push to the defence corridor in Uttar Pradesh, the Yogi Adityanath government announced that two companies are investing over Rs 580 crore to make drones. The announcement to establish a defence corridor in the state was made by the Prime Minister in 2018.

The companies – Ancor Research Lab LLP and Allen & Alvan Private Limited – are investing Rs 550 crore and Rs 30.75 crore, respectively to set up plants in Aligarh node to make drones. These unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will not only help the Indian security forces, but can be used in disaster management, enhancing security and agriculture, the UP government said in a release. The companies have already been allotted 10 hectares of land and the construction is expected to begin soon, the release said.

Many domestic and foreign companies have shown interest in setting up defence related projects in Uttar Pradesh, the government said, adding that memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) worth ₹50,000 crore were signed during Defence Expo held in Lucknow in 2020.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has directed the officials to remove all the bottlenecks and ensure that companies do not face any hurdles in procuring land, or in other procedures for setting up their units.

According to Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA), 29 companies have submitted their proposals to state government for setting up factories near Aligarh, 11 around Lucknow, eight in Kanpur and six in Jhansi. Based on the requests received from these companies, UPEIDA has so far allotted 55.40 hectares of land to 19 reputed companies in the Aligarh node. Together, these companies will invest ₹1245.75 crore to make defence equipment.

UPEIDA is set to inaugurate Aligarh node of the defence corridor this month while Kanpur and Jhansi nodes would be opened in September and October respectively. The defence corridor is expected to generate more than one lakh jobs.