Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday, 13 August announced that the Maharashtra government will constitute a high-level Ministerial Task Force to accelerate the state's drone industry, to be chaired by Minister for Electronics, Information Technology and Artificial Intelligence Ashish Shelar. The decision followed a high-level review meeting with key drone sector stakeholders convened by the Chief Minister in Mumbai.

What the Task Force Will Do

The task force is mandated to drive effective implementation of state drone policies, extend existing government schemes to entrepreneurs, and resolve operational bottlenecks promptly. Its formation signals the government's intent to move beyond policy declarations toward active industry facilitation.

Fadnavis also directed officials to develop a unified 'Policy of Policies' for the drone sector — a consolidated framework bringing together provisions on Research and Development (R&D), indigenous component manufacturing, testing facilities, patents, and subsidies, which are currently dispersed across multiple state policies. He noted that Maharashtra's drone policy is already among the more robust in the country but requires structural consolidation to deliver maximum impact.

Single-Window Access and Support for Existing Players

The Chief Minister instructed departments to pool R&D financial provisions from various state schemes into a single access point, allowing entrepreneurs to claim combined benefits for innovation, development, and testing without navigating multiple channels. Notably, he stressed that existing enterprises must not be sidelined in the push to attract fresh investment, directing departments to explore financial assistance to cover testing costs for established players until official laboratories and testing facilities come online.

Drone City in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

Fadnavis directed officials to expedite the proposed 'Drone City' in the industrial belt of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. The state is considering a special incentive framework through the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) for the next two to three years to allocate land to drone manufacturers. Plans include dedicated testing ranges, support for patent filing expenses, and streamlined access to joint Central and State Government incentive programmes.

Minister Shelar's Assurance to Entrepreneurs

Minister Ashish Shelar assured drone innovators and youth entrepreneurs that work already executed under existing frameworks would be properly evaluated and accommodated within the current policy structure. 'The state's objective is to give a massive push to indigenous drone manufacturing by extending full administrative and infrastructure support. Through inter-departmental coordination, specialised missions and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funding, we will boost the local ecosystem. Additionally, state aerospace infrastructure will be strengthened immediately to tap expanding opportunities in the defence domain,' Shelar said.

What Comes Next

With the task force now formally announced, the immediate priorities are consolidating the 'Policy of Policies' framework, fast-tracking the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Drone City, and operationalising the MIDC land-allocation scheme. The government's push into drone manufacturing also carries a defence dimension, with state aerospace infrastructure earmarked for near-term upgrades to capture growing opportunities in that segment.