Mumbai, June 16 (AHN) In a major push to position the state as a global tech leader, the Maharashtra government on Tuesday unveiled the Unmanned Systems Policy 2026–2031.

The policy outlines a strategic blueprint to transform Maharashtra into the "Capital of Unmanned Systems" by building a comprehensive ecosystem covering Research and Development (R&D), manufacturing, innovation, and Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) activities.

The state government expects to attract an investment of Rs 25,000 crore dedicated to the unmanned systems sector and generate more than one lakh direct and indirect jobs across manufacturing, R&D, services, and operations.

The state Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday gave its approval for the Unmanned Systems Policy 2026–2031.

The state government aims to build a fully integrated, inclusive ecosystem that powers air, surface, and marine unmanned vehicles.

Over the next five years, the policy sets forth highly ambitious socio-economic targets, including development of specialised manufacturing clusters equipped with testing and commercialisation facilities, establish three world-class Centers of Excellence (CoEs), train certify at least 5,000 Remote Pilots, and launch the "Maharashtra Unmanned Systems Mission" to oversee operations and accelerate domestic Intellectual Property (IP) creation.

To ensure structured execution, the state has divided its roadmap into five foundational pillars including research, innovation and start ups, testing, certification and infrastructure, manufacturing and industrial ecosystem, capacity building and skill development and adoption, governance and market creation.

"The policy, spearheaded by the Department of Electronics, Information Technology and Artificial Intelligence, creates a unified framework that extends far beyond conventional aerial drones.

It targets the end-to-end development of unmanned systems across multiple sectors, including air, surface, water, and land-based operations," the government statement said.

The policy framework covers Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), autonomous marine surface and underwater vehicles, and ground-based robotic systems.

The state plans to deploy these systems to revolutionise agriculture, streamline urban transport with automated signalling, and execute high-risk operations in hazardous environments.

The policy aims to deploy autonomous systems to revolutionise rural and urban landscapes.

By integrating high-tech drones and robotics into the agricultural sector, the state government aims to facilitate precision farming, enhance crop monitoring, and assist in spraying operations, thereby minimising risks and costs for local farmers.

These systems will also be heavily utilised in security operations, urban transport planning, and managing hazardous situations where manual human intervention poses a threat.

Prior to the policy's formal approval, industry stakeholders pointed out a lack of dedicated in-state testing zones and regulatory ambiguity surrounding "red zones" (restricted airspaces) in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).

"To address these pain points and prevent businesses from migrating to neighbouring states, the policy lays out blueprints for establishing state-of-the-art testing infrastructure and a dedicated Unmanned Systems Corporation. This body will serve as a single-window regulatory and facilitative mechanism to attract major financial investments," the statement said.

The state government expects to aggressively attract new investments and support its rising number of Remote Pilot Training Organisations (RPTOs).