India's first greenfield smart city
Everything about Dholera, in one intelligent platform.
The Dholera Special Investment Region — sourced, verified and timestamped. Every figure dated and attributed; targets kept honest.
₹1.19 lakh cr
Investment
96
Companies
112
Projects
7
Infra
Photo: Sarvajanik Puralekh, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The primer
What is Dholera SIR?
Dholera Special Investment Region (SIR) is India's largest and most advanced attempt to build a city from open land rather than grow one from an old one. It lies on the Bhaal, a flat, low-lying coastal plain on the western shore of the Gulf of Khambhat, in the south of Ahmedabad district, Gujarat — roughly 100 to 110 kilometres south-west of Ahmedabad city. On paper it is very large: a planned region of about 920 square kilometres, which makes it one of the largest planned urban footprints in India.
Dholera did not begin as a city — it began as a point on a freight line. It is the flagship node of the Delhi–Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC), an India–Japan industrial programme conceived in the mid-2000s, and it was given its own legal machinery by the Gujarat Special Investment Region Act, 2009. In 2024 it acquired a second identity, as the site of India's first commercial semiconductor fabrication plant, converting a regional planning project into a matter of national industrial strategy.
It is important to read Dholera forwards, from plans and construction milestones toward a finished form that remains roughly fifteen years away. As of mid-2026 the developed heart of Dholera — the Activation Area — covers about 22.5 square kilometres, a little over two per cent of the notified region. The honest summary is the one this platform holds throughout: Dholera in 2026 is a real, funded, government-backed infrastructure project in its early phase, an infrastructure story running ahead of its living-city story.
Read the full guide: What is Dholera SIR? →
Key facts
Dholera at a glance
The figures below mix delivered facts, projects under construction and stated targets — read them in that light. Where sources disagree, a range is given rather than a single confident number.
| Location | Ahmedabad district, Gujarat, on the Gulf of Khambhat ~100–110 km south-west of Ahmedabad city |
|---|---|
| Notified area | ~920 km² 879 km² as originally notified in 2009; on the order of 880–920 km² |
| Developable / urban area | ~580 km² developable; ~422 km² urban Urban development area across the six Town Planning schemes |
| Activation Area | ~22.5 km² built demonstration zone Trunk roads, utilities, drainage and the ABCD command centre — substantially complete |
| Programme | Flagship node of the Delhi–Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) An India–Japan industrial corridor programme |
| Governance | DSIRDA (planning) + DICDL (delivery SPV) DICDL incorporated Jan 2016 — Gujarat 51% / Government of India 49% |
| Ahmedabad–Dholera Expressway | ~109 km, inaugurated 31 March 2026 Access-controlled; drive time about 45 minutes |
| Dholera International Airport | ~1,426 ha; ~80% complete (mid-July 2026) Target Oct 2026 (slipped from March 2026); Phase 1 ~1.5 million passengers/year (target) |
| Semiconductor fab (Tata Electronics + PSMC) | ~₹91,000 crore; up to 50,000 wafers/month Cabinet-approved 29 Feb 2024; 28–110 nm; ~50% built — first output a target (late 2026 vs 2027–28) |
| Ultra-mega solar park | ~300 MW commissioned Of a reported ~5,000 MW target toward 2030 (phased build) |
| Master-plan horizon | Full phased build toward ~2042 An infrastructure story currently running ahead of the living-city story |
Sources: Sarkhedi (2026) working paper; NICDC; DICDL; Tata Group / PMO. Last verified: 31 July 2026.
Why it matters
Why Dholera matters
Dholera carries the political weight of being the place where the Indian state chose to test whether a world-class city can be manufactured from farmland on a schedule. Its significance now rests on a small number of genuine anchors. The Tata Electronics–PSMC semiconductor fab — approved by the Union Cabinet in February 2024 at a reported investment of up to ₹91,000 crore — is India's first commercial fabrication plant, making the mature-node chips that run cars, appliances and industrial machinery. It is the flagship of the India Semiconductor Mission.
Energy and connectivity are being built to match. An ultra-mega solar park — around 300 MW commissioned of a reported 5,000 MW target — pairs clean power with a power-hungry industrial cluster. The Ahmedabad–Dholera Expressway opened in March 2026, cutting the drive from Ahmedabad to about 45 minutes, and a greenfield international airport and a fast-emerging data-centre cluster are converging on the same coastal plain.
The honest counterweight belongs here too. The land assembly was litigated and stayed at least once; the coastal siting carries real flooding, drainage and salinity risk; timelines have slipped repeatedly; and much of the land is bought speculatively rather than to be used. Dholera's verdict rests on execution over a horizon that extends toward 2042 — which is exactly why a sourced, neutral reference is worth having.
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Recent news & updates
infrastructure12 Sept 2026
Gujarat strengthens India’s semiconductor capabilities under the leadership of CM Bhupendra Patel
Reported by The New Indian Express.
infrastructure10 Sept 2026
Ahmedabad-Dholera Expressway To Get New Interchange With Sardar Patel Ring Road
Reported by megaproject.com.
infrastructure9 Sept 2026
Sarkhej-Dholera semi-high-speed rail project aims for 2030 operations
Ahmedabad: The Sarkhej-Dholera semi-high-speed double rail line has moved a major step closer to reality, with Western Railway inviting bids for the Rs 18,901.68-crore engineering, procurement and ...
infrastructure8 Sept 2026
Telangana Media Delegation Reviews Dholera Greenfield Smart City and Lothal Archaeological Site
Reported by PIB.
general7 Sept 2026
DHOLERA SIR: INDIA’S SEMICONDUCTOR CITY AND THE INVESTMENT WINDOW
Reported by Realty Plus Magazine.
Questions
Dholera SIR — frequently asked questions
What is Dholera SIR?
Dholera Special Investment Region (SIR) is India's largest greenfield smart-city project and the flagship node of the Delhi–Mumbai Industrial Corridor. It sits on the Gulf of Khambhat, roughly 100–110 km south-west of Ahmedabad in Gujarat, spans on the order of 880–920 km², and was constituted under the Gujarat Special Investment Region Act, 2009. Source: Sarkhedi (2026) working paper; NICDC; DICDL.
Is Dholera actually built yet — what is operational today?
As of mid-2026 Dholera is a real, funded, actively-built infrastructure project in its early phase. The ~109 km Ahmedabad–Dholera Expressway opened on 31 March 2026, and trunk infrastructure across the ~22.5 km² Activation Area is substantially complete. The international airport and the semiconductor fab are under construction, not yet operational, and the full city is a phased build toward about 2042. Source: Sarkhedi (2026).
What is the Dholera semiconductor fab?
It is India's first commercial semiconductor fabrication plant, a Tata Electronics–PSMC (Taiwan) venture approved by the Union Cabinet on 29 February 2024, with a reported investment of up to about ₹91,000 crore and capacity of up to 50,000 wafer starts per month on mature 28–110 nm nodes. It was reported roughly 50% built in mid-2026; first output is a target — some accounts point to late 2026, others to a 2027–28 ramp. Source: Tata Group (2024); PMO (2024); Sarkhedi (2026).
When will Dholera International Airport open?
The greenfield airport near Navagam was reported about 80% complete in mid-July 2026, with a likely operational window of September–October 2026 subject to approvals; an earlier March 2026 target was missed. Phase 1 is designed for about 1.5 million passengers a year. Treat October 2026 as a current target, not a certainty. Source: Sarkhedi (2026).
How far is Dholera from Ahmedabad?
Dholera SIR lies roughly 100–110 km south-west of Ahmedabad. The ~109 km access-controlled Ahmedabad–Dholera Expressway, inaugurated on 31 March 2026, cuts the drive to about 45 minutes. Source: Sarkhedi (2026).
Is Dholera a safe place to invest?
Dholera is a genuine, government-backed project, but it is an infrastructure story running ahead of its living-city story, and much of its land is bought speculatively. There is no honest single price-per-bigha — a figure only means something for a specific, sourced plot — and appreciation is an expectation, not a promise. Before buying, verify Gujarat RERA registration, confirm clear title and non-agricultural (N.A.) status for the exact survey number, and get an all-in price in writing. Source: Sarkhedi (2026).
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