Maharashtra’s economy to surpass those of Singapore, UAE in 2 to 3 years: Fadnavis

Mumbai, May 22 (PTI) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday (May 22, 2026) said the State is poised to surpass the economies of Singapore and the UAE in the next two to three years, driven by rapid growth in innovation, artificial intelligence, startups and infrastructure.

Maharashtra was not competing with any other Indian State as it has already become the world’s 30th largest economy, he said.

Speaking at the ‘ImagineX 2026’ event held at the Jio World Centre here, Mr. Fadnavis said Maharashtra has emerged as the startup and unicorn capital of India and is now the country’s leading State in research, innovation and economic growth.

“Maharashtra is currently a $660 billion economy and is the closest Indian state to achieving the target of becoming a $1 trillion economy,” he said during an interaction.

The Chief Minister said Maharashtra’s economy has grown from around ₹14 lakh crore in 2015 to ₹54 lakh crore today, registering more than three-fold growth in the last decade.

“Maharashtra is not competing with any other Indian state. It has already become the world’s 30th largest economy, and in the next two to three years it will surpass the economies of Singapore and the UAE,” Mr. Fadnavis said.

He said the State has maintained an average growth rate of around 10% and is expected to achieve the $1 trillion economy target by 2030 despite temporary challenges such as El Nino conditions.

Mr. Fadnavis said technology and artificial intelligence are acting as “force multipliers” for Maharashtra’s development. The State government has created a separate AI department and commissionerate to promote the use of AI across governance and industry, he added.

He said AI-based systems are already being used in the criminal justice system, making the process from crime scene investigation to filing of chargesheets fully digital and blockchain-enabled.

The CM said the government has prepared a long-term “Viksit Maharashtra 2047” vision document with short-term goals for 2030, medium-term goals for 2035 and long-term goals for 2047.

To monitor implementation, the state has set up a “Vision Management Unit” and created 2,000 data points for various government departments, he said.

Mr. Fadnavis said Maharashtra has achieved a memorandum of understanding (MoU)-to-investment conversion rate of 55-60% compared to the national average of 35%, while agreements signed at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting have recorded an implementation rate of 85%.

Every investment proposal is monitored through a dedicated relationship manager and a war-room mechanism, he added.

Highlighting the use of AI in agriculture, Mr. Fadnavis said the government’s ‘Mahavistar’ app has been downloaded by 50 lakh farmers and provides agriculture-related services through AI-powered assistance.

He said the app also supports the Bhilli tribal language, enabling tribal farmers to seek guidance in their native language.

“India has a young and ambitious population, with more than 65% of people below the age of 35. Therefore, adopting AI will not be difficult,” CM Fadnavis said.