The Government of Maharashtra has officially launched its landmark Global Capability Centre (GCC) Policy 2025, setting in motion an ambitious economic initiative designed to fundamentally reshape the state’s commercial real estate landscape and job market.
This policy represents a clear strategic thrust aimed at establishing Maharashtra as the premier destination for global enterprises seeking innovation, scale, and specialised talent. The immediate targets are formidable: attracting and facilitating the establishment of 400 new GCC centres, which are projected to create over four lakh high-value jobs across the state.
Also read: India GCC Job Growth to Hit 1 Million by 2030, Says NLB
The timing of this state-level intervention is critical. GCCs, traditionally focused on back-office operations and cost arbitrage, are rapidly evolving their mandate. They are now viewed by their parent organisations as critical hubs for research, development, and strategic innovation.
This strategic pivot aligns perfectly with the recent legislative move in Maharashtra. Vimal Nadar, National Director and Head of Research at Colliers India, provided keen insight into this shift, stating that, “GCCs in India are in the midst of a transformative phase with increasing focus on innovation-led, domain-specialized, and digitally integrated solutions catering to complex global business requirements. In line with various other state-specific GCC policies, the Maharashtra GCC Policy also provides an impetus to expansion of global enterprises in the state by offering capital subsidies, tax exemptions, grants, additional FSI, fast-track approvals etc.
The Maharashtra GCC Policy, in particular, is likely to expedite office space uptake beyond traditional hubs of Mumbai and Pune, into Tier II & III cities such as Nashik, Nagpur & Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. Consequently, GCC leasing in the state can potentially increase from around 15 million sq.ft. in the last 5 years to 20-25 million sq.ft. in the next 5 years. Moreover, specialized GCC clusters can help broaden diversification beyond the traditional domains of Technology, Financial Services, and Automotive, extending into emerging sectors such as Defense, Aerospace, Life Sciences, and Renewable Energy.”
These comprehensive incentives are structured to dismantle bureaucratic hurdles and minimise initial capital expenditure for global corporations. By offering a potent combination of capital subsidies and operational grants, the government is signalling a deep commitment to ensuring a friction-less setup process.
The provision of additional Floor Space Index (FSI) is particularly significant, as it addresses a key constraint in high-demand urban centres, enabling developers to build larger, dedicated campuses tailored to the exacting specifications of global firms. Crucially, the policy includes mechanisms for fast-track approvals, which can accelerate project timelines by months, offering a competitive advantage over neighbouring states.
Perhaps the most strategically vital element of the new policy is its deliberate focus on geographical diversification. For decades, the GCC footprint in Maharashtra has been heavily concentrated in established commercial corridors of Mumbai and Pune. The new policy actively encourages corporations to expand their office space uptake beyond these saturated traditional hubs into emerging Tier II and Tier III cities.
Cities earmarked for this development include Nashik, Nagpur, and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, which offer lower operational costs, a growing local talent pool, and improved infrastructure. This decentralisation is essential for equitable regional development and ensuring sustainable urban growth.
The policy’s impact on commercial real estate is expected to be transformative and immediate. The demand for specialised, Grade A office spaces—essential for global operations—is set to surge. Colliers projects that GCC leasing in Maharashtra can potentially increase from approximately 15 million square feet recorded over the last five years to a robust 20-25 million square feet in the next five years. This substantial increase in uptake will not only spur construction activity but also drive demand across the ancillary real estate ecosystem, from housing for employees to retail and hospitality services.
Furthermore, the policy aims to broaden the economic diversity of the state. While GCC activity has historically centred on Technology, Financial Services, and the Automotive sector, the new incentives are designed to attract specialized clusters in emerging, high-growth domains. This includes critical sectors such as Defence, Aerospace, Life Sciences, and Renewable Energy. By nurturing these niche capabilities, Maharashtra is moving beyond being a mere service provider to becoming a hub for high-end research and strategic industrial innovation, securing its future position in the global value chain.
The establishment of these specialised GCC clusters represents a long-term strategic investment in deep, domain-specific expertise, promising a future of higher economic resilience and sophisticated job creation. The overall effect of the GCC Policy 2025 is a powerful recalibration of Maharashtra’s economic engine, poised to unlock massive investment and talent potential.
