New Delhi,: The Commerce Ministry has requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to convene a meeting of a Task Force of various ministries to expedite development of an industrial corridor along the Delhi-Mumbai Freight Corridor.

"A Task Force of all the Ministries and states concerned will work out the details and the Prime Minister has been requested to convene a meeting and give broad directions to the Task Force on development of this important project," Minister of Commerce and Industry Kamal Nath said.

Along the Delhi-Mumbai Freight Corridor, a 1,450 km long industrial corridor is proposed with essential infrastructure like roads, connectivity to ports, development and expansion of ports, power projects and industrial estates/SEZ's.

The corridor would pass through the states of Gujarat, Haryana, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

On growth in manufacturing, Nath said the sector has emerged as a major contributor to GDP, overtaking growth in the services sector.

"While industrial production grew by over 10 per cent during April-October 2006, growth of manufacturing was 11.2 per cent over the corresponding period of the previous year and there are indications that this rate will be maintained and improved," an official statement quoted him.