The special economic zone (SEZ) in Phaltan tehsil of Satara district was fully denotified by a gazette issued by the Central government on 11 September. In 2010, approximately 101.25 hectares of land from Survadi and Nandal villages in Phaltan had been designated as an SEZ for the engineering sector, with the intention of providing concessions to industries, boosting foreign investment, and creating jobs.

According to an official from the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC), 48.17 hectares of this land had been denotified earlier in 2017. The official explained that the remaining land area of 53.08 hectares, which housed units of an industrial conglomerate, was now being de-bonded from the SEZ status. The conglomerate had opted to operate as a domestic tariff area (DTA), which means it would not be required to comply with duty-free regulations but would need to adhere to other industry regulations. The MIDC official, who requested anonymity, noted that the proposal for the full denotification of the SEZ had been put forward and the Central government had subsequently issued the gazette this week.

However, the Central government has instructed the state government to develop infrastructure in the denotified area to support the functions of the former SEZ and to ensure compliance with existing land use guidelines in the zone. The MIDC official also informed TOI that the denotification of the SEZ would not affect industrial operations, which would continue as before.