Indore, the country’s cleanest city, is one of six chosen by the Centre for its Light House project under the Global Housing Technology Challenge-India (GHTC-India) initiative. Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually laid the foundation stone for the project here and in Lucknow, Ranchi, Chennai, Rajkot and Agartala on New Year’s Day.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha recently announced a Rs. 28,400-crore Industrial Development Package 2021, aiming to attract Rs. 20,000 crore of investments and create 4.5 lakh jobs in the Union Territory. He said the Union cabinet sanctioned the package on January 6, and it will remain in force for 17 years.

The Union government has cleared a fund of Rs. 1,701.81 crore for the Tumakuru Industrial Area under the Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC) project, which is expected to create jobs for 88,500 people, of which 17,700 will be from service industries such as retail and offices.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved three infrastructure proposals worth Rs 7,725 crore for setting up greenfield industrial cities with connectivity to major transportation corridors such as the eastern and western dedicated freight corridors, expressways and National Highways.

The Uttar Pradesh government has asked the Noida authority to work out a plan to develop a new Noida area on 20,000 hectares of land. Noida’s boundaries will expand till the adjoining district of Bulandshahr, and the city will double its size, for which 20,000 hectares will be acquired.

The American government is keen to set up an American hub in the port city, which would be the second such hub in the country. Ahmedabad is the other city which has an American hub. American officials have visited Visakhapatnam and were very satisfied with the facilities. Andhra Pradesh has welcomed the US cooperation.

Cidco has decided to appoint Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Ltd as general consultant to oversee the balance of work on the 11.1 km Navi Mumbai Metro Line-1 between Belapur and Taloja in view of the long delay in the project. The current contractors will continue the work but will be monitored by Maha Metro.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently dedicated the Kochi-Mangaluru natural gas pipeline to the nation through a video conference, marking an important milestone towards the creation of ‘One Nation One Gas Grid'. The pipeline would improve the ease of living in both Karnataka and Kerala.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal recently launched a Freight Business Development Portal as one stop solution for all the needs of railway freight customers. He said the portal will be game changer in ensuring in ease of doing business with railways. The portal will ensure that best services are available to clients.