DHOLERA, India—India plans to transform a vast tract of salty marshland in Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s home state into the most ambitious demonstration of its push to be recognized as a serious player in advanced manufacturing, and an alternative to China.
Spanning some 355 square miles, the agglomeration of 22 villages in Dholera in India’s western state of Gujarat is a pet project of Mr. Modi. When he was chief minister of the state, he envisioned developing the underused land into the country’s answer to Shenzhen, the manufacturing hub of southern China.
