Maharashtra Industries Minister Uday Samant has said that the State government intends to purchase 5,000 hectares of land in the left-wing extremist-affected Gadchiroli area for industrial development.

He made the announcement at the District Planning Committee and Industries Department review meeting.

Samant emphasized that a number of significant industrial companies are interested in locating their operations in Gadchiroli, necessitating the purchase of a sizable amount of land.

The minister informed about the proposed Rs 22,000-crore investments by companies like Lloyds Metals and Varad Ferro in the district, for which he said, MoUs have been signed and notifications are set to be published soon.

Plans to acquire land for new industries were outlined at the meeting, covering areas like Chamorshi, Mulchera, Armori and Sironcha, totalling approximately 5,000 hectares, he said.