Britain Offers Planning Expertise for Nine New Indian Cities

British Prime Minister David Cameron has taken the biggest trade delegation of planners, architects and financial advisers to date to Mumbai to discuss a feasibility study for a 600-mile "economic" corridor between India's financial and tech capitals, Mumbai and Bangalore, reports Reuters.

"'With me I've got architects, planners and finance experts who can work out the complete solution,' he told an audience of business people and workers at Hindustan Unilever Limited."

Creating between half a million and two million jobs and contributing to 11.8 percent of India's GDP, the corridor would see the development of nine districts, a million new homes, 120 schools and ten colleges and hospitals by 2030.

The first phase would build the physical infrastructure, including transport, power and telecommunications and the second the social infrastructure.

Cameron's administration has offered to pay half the share for the study if the Indian government matches the funds. It is also planning to hand out same-day visas to the UK for Indian business people to strengthen business relations.

Creating industrial corridor cities is part of India's existing growth strategy, with plans under way for a 24-city, 920-mile corridor along a rail line between New Delhi and Mumbai with Japanese funding.