Make in India: Maharashtra CM Fadnavis in talks with Swedish defence company Saab Group to set up unit

MUMBAI: At a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is busy drumming up support for his high-decibel Make In India campaign, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has quietly initiated talks with Swedish defence company Saab Group to set up a production unit in his state.

Just back from the Hanover Fair 2015, where he had gone to promote Maharashtra, Fadnavis spoke exclusively to ET on Thursday, saying that his government has begun a dialogue with Sweden's Saab Group to team up with Pune-based Bharat Forge for setting up a defence production unit in Maharashtra soon.

Fadnavis said Saab expressed interest in setting up a manufacturing base in Maharashtra and even presented a business plan with transfer of technology and a proposal to collaborate with Indian companies if land and power are assured to them. Saab Group is a Swedish aerospace and defence company specialising in radar and avionics. Fadnavis held a series of meetings with Swedish defence, aerospace, radar and avionics experts, and showcased the obvious advantages of Maharashtra — Air Force maintenance command in Nagpur and Indian aeronautic manufacturing unit in Nashik. The Maharashtra CM said his aim was to market Maharashtra as the largest base for the German engineering industry.