Nagpur: In a major escalation of Nagpur’s ambitions to become a defence and aerospace manufacturing hub, the Maharashtra Government has provisionally allotted about 223 acres in the MIHAN SEZ to Solar Defence and Aerospace Limited (SDAL), a defence arm of the Nagpur-based Solar Group. The decision, flagged by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on social media, follows the memorandum of understanding the group signed with the state during the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Under the Davos MoU, the Solar Group plans an “Anchor Mega Defence and Aerospace Project” for MIHAN with a proposed investment of roughly Rs 12,780 crore. Company documents and government releases put the direct employment impact at more than 6,800 jobs from the anchor project alone, with supplementary units expected to add further positions.
A portion of the land will be dedicated to a focused transport-aircraft and defence equipment manufacturing unit, a separate project estimated at about Rs 660 crore that is expected to generate about 875 jobs. Together, these initiatives are intended to stitch a supply-chain ecosystem at MIHAN that ranges from commercial explosives to precision aerospace components.
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The development arrives as Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL), already a MIHAN tenant, ramps up its own presence, recently securing an additional 30 acres to expand aerospace manufacturing capacity. With Tata doubling down on aircraft sub-assembly work at Nagpur, state officials say MIHAN is steadily attracting the kinds of anchor tenants needed to build a clustered defence manufacturing corridor.
Solar Group, known for its commercial explosives business and rising profile in defence ordnance, is positioning itself well beyond traditional explosives. Public filings and company statements note plans to scale up manufacture of defence munitions, including 155mm shells, and to increase production of systems such as multimodal hand grenades and UAVs; the company has disclosed a substantial defence order book in recent filings. SDAL’s MIHAN footprint will complement its existing production facilities near Bazargaon, which currently handle both commercial and military-grade explosives.
State planners say the twin moves by Solar and Tata are part of a deliberate push to create an “ecosystem,” suppliers, integrators and final-assembly units, within MIHAN so Maharashtra can attract higher-value defence work and reduce import dependence. For Nagpur, the promise is jobs, ancillary industry and an upgraded industrial profile; for the Solar Group, it is a pivot toward integrated defence and aerospace manufacturing across large contiguous land parcels.
Officials cautioned that allotment and project implementation are subject to statutory clearances, detailed project reports and phased investments. Still, industry watchers say the combination of sizable land allocations and MoUs signed at forums such as Davos signal growing investor confidence in MIHAN as India’s emerging defence-aerospace node.
