Pune to Position Itself in Global Economy Under NITI Aayog’s Growth Hub Programme
Pune, 13th February 2026: Divisional Commissioner Dr Chandrakant Pulkundwar has directed officials to expedite the ongoing survey for preparing the draft comprehensive economic development plan under the proposed ‘Pune Growth Hub’ initiative. He said the blueprint must be prepared at the earliest and submitted to the state government after incorporating inputs from all key stakeholders.
Dr Pulkundwar was speaking at a review meeting on the Pune Metropolitan Growth Hub held at Vidhan Bhavan. He instructed that workshops be organised with all concerned government departments, agencies, private sector representatives and industrial stakeholders, and that the draft plan be finalised based on the outcomes of these consultations.
Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation Commissioner Shravan Hardikar, Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority Commissioner Dr Yogesh Mhase (via video conferencing), PMRDA Additional Commissioner Deepak Singla, Pune Municipal Corporation Additional Commissioner Prithviraj B P, District Rural Development Agency Project Director Shalini Kadu, MahaMetro Director Atul Gadgil, ISEG Director Shirish Sankhe (via video conferencing), PIC representatives Abhay Pethe and Mahesh Devdhar, representatives of McKinsey & Company, and officials from various government departments were present at the meeting.
Dr Pulkundwar said that NITI Aayog has included the Pune Metropolitan Region in its Growth Hub initiative with the objective of positioning the Pune economic region prominently in the global economy. Under this initiative, a draft macro-economic development plan is to be prepared and submitted to the state government.
He stressed that the plan must be comprehensive, based on detailed data regarding the region’s current economic capacity, available infrastructure, strengths and competitive advantages. At the same time, it should assess future challenges and identify areas requiring improvement to ensure sustainable and balanced growth.
ISEG and McKinsey & Company have been tasked with collecting data and holding consultations with departments such as industries, municipal corporations, skill development and innovation, tourism, as well as representatives from sectors including manufacturing, information technology and food processing. Dr Pulkundwar directed that structured workshops be organised with these sectors and said meetings with other government institutions would be scheduled soon to gather additional inputs.
He added that the Divisional Commissioner’s office has established a coordination mechanism to facilitate collaboration among departments and provide full support to the two consulting agencies in preparing the Pune Growth Hub master plan.
During the meeting, Shravan Hardikar suggested that industry associations such as MCCIA and FICCI should also be consulted while drafting the comprehensive plan so that their recommendations can be incorporated.
ISEG Director Shirish Sankhe and representatives of McKinsey & Company made detailed presentations on the progress of the work and the proposed framework for the Pune Growth Hub.
