Need $1 trillion investment for infra in 5 years, India tells Gulf investors

The Dollar Business Bureau

Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion invited Gulf businessmen and investors to tap the huge potential of investment opportunities in India

    Offering investment opportunities up to $1 trillion, India has asked businessmen form oil-rich GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries to explore more potential for bilateral collaborations, especially in energy and infrastructure sectors. “India needs $1 trillion worth investments within the coming five years, especially in the infrastructure sector,” said Ravneet Kaur, Joint Secretary in the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) under the Ministry of Commerce. Addressing the 4th GCC-India Industrial Forum in Saudi Arabia on Thursday,  Kaur invited Gulf businessmen and investors to tap the huge potential of investment opportunities in India and said that the government was "keen to move forward quickly" to simplify norms for foreign investors. A 42-member Indian business delegation led by Shobana Kamineni, Vice President of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), took part in the two-day event which was inaugurated by Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Commerce and Industry Tawfiq Al-Rabiah. Al-Rabiah also urged the Indian and Gulf investors to exploit the best investment opportunities available in their markets. He pointed out that the geographical and cultural proximity of the GCC states and India would additionally strengthen the economic viability in the region. Kamineni stressed on the need to strengthen India’s existing economic ties with the GCC to best serve the interest of both sides and help create closer commercial and investment interactions in the region. “As an energy thirsty country, India looks to the oil-rich GCC states for more investments in vital areas, especially in petrochemical and pharmaceutical sectors. GCC states have tremendous economic significance for India, especially in meeting India’s energy needs,” Kamineni said. At the forum, Indian delegation highlighted some of the initiatives and policy reforms undertaken by the government to make Indian market an ideal one for foreign investors. The Indian government has taken initiatives such as ‘Smart Cities’, ‘Smart Villages’, ‘Housing for All by 2022’ and Clean India Mission to modernise India’s infrastructure, for which the country needs billions of dollars of investments, CII said in its release.  

November 20, 2015 |5:22pm IST