Policy push, strategic corridors and manufacturing shift to power next phase of India’s industrial and warehousing boom

Bengaluru: India’s industrial and warehousing market is entering a phase of accelerated transformation, driven by policy support, large-scale infrastructure augmentation, supply chain recalibration, evolving consumption patterns and rapid technology adoption. With manufacturing currently contributing about 17% to India’s GDP and projected to rise to nearly 25% by 2035, industrial and warehousing real estate is emerging as one of the fastest-growing asset classes, backed by rising demand for modern Grade A facilities and sustained institutional capital inflows.

According to a recent report by Colliers India, titled India’s Emerging Industrial & Warehousing Corridors: Mapping the Next Growth Frontier, multiple cities across the country are poised to emerge as industrial hubs over the coming decades. This momentum is being supported by regulatory initiatives such as the PM Gati Shakti programme, National Logistics Policy, and a network of industrial corridors, smart cities, multimodal logistics parks and greenfield ports and airports.

The report assessed over 100 cities using an analytical framework covering connectivity along freight and industrial corridors, upcoming industrial smart cities, proposed multimodal logistics parks, port and airport expansion, and development of integrated textile hubs. Based on ecosystem maturity, infrastructure readiness, manufacturing presence, availability of Grade A stock, MSME activity and e-commerce penetration, 30 high-potential cities were shortlisted.


These were categorised into 8 prime hubs, 12 emerging hubs and 10 nascent hubs. Prime hubs are already established demand centres and are expected to consolidate their lead by absorbing new supply quickly. Emerging hubs are likely to gain traction over the next few years as critical infrastructure projects near completion, while nascent hubs are expected to scale up gradually, supported by policy incentives, core infrastructure development and improving investor confidence.

The geographical spread of these 30 hubs reflects balanced growth across northern, southern, western, eastern and central India. Government focus on domestic manufacturing, along with sector-specific interventions such as the BioPharma SHAKTI Scheme and Semiconductor Mission 2.0, is expected to catalyse real estate growth even in smaller industrial centres.

“The next wave of industrial and warehousing growth will be strengthened by expanding industrial and freight corridors, multimodal logistics parks, smart industrial cities and major port and airport expansion projects,” said Vijay Ganesh, Managing Director, Industrial & Logistics Services at Colliers India. He added that recent budgetary emphasis on dispersed economic growth, including allocations for City Economic Regions and targeted sectoral interventions, could unlock long-term warehousing demand across both established and emerging markets.

Infrastructure development remains central to this transformation. India is currently developing 11 industrial corridors, five dedicated freight corridors, 20 industrial smart cities, 35 sanctioned multimodal logistics parks, seven PM MITRA textile parks, and over 800 projects under the Sagarmala programme. In parallel, eight international airports are under various stages of expansion.

This infrastructure push is expected to significantly lift demand. Annual Grade A industrial and warehousing absorption across the top eight cities is projected to exceed 50 million sq ft by 2030, while total Grade A stock in these markets could cross 500 million sq ft by the end of the decade and potentially scale up to 2 billion sq ft by 2047.

“Policy-driven focus on manufacturing and infrastructure will remain pivotal in shaping leasing volumes, stock availability and quality of offerings,” said Vimal Nadar, National Director and Head of Research at Colliers India. He noted that the expansion is also likely to accelerate balanced regional growth and position smaller cities as the next frontiers of India’s industrial and warehousing market.

Over the long term, the sector is expected to be defined by greater efficiency, automation, sustainability, and deeper integration of technology into supply chains, reinforcing its role as a critical pillar of India’s economic growth story.