India offers extensive opportunity, options for investment: PM Modi's pitch to US firms

Delivering an address at the two-day virtual 'India Ideas Summit', hosted by US-India Business Council, PM Modi said: "Today, there is global optimism towards India. This is because India offers a perfect combination of openness, opportunities and options."

"Let me elaborate. India celebrates openness in people and in governance. Open minds make open markets. Open markets lead to greater prosperity. These are principles on which both India and the USA agree," said he.

The Indian PM said during the last six years, his government made many efforts to make the economy more open and reform-oriented.

"Reforms have ensured increased ‘Competitiveness’, enhanced ‘Transparency’, expanded ‘Digitization’, greater ‘Innovation’ and more ‘Policy stability’," he said.

Pointing out that India provides an extensive scale of investment opportunities, Modi outlined the areas where US firms can do business.

"India invites you to invest in the hard-work of our farmers. India has done historic reforms in the agriculture sector recently. There are investment opportunities in: Agricultural inputs and machinery, Agriculture supply chain management, Ready-to-eat items, Fisheries and Organic produce."

He also mentioned that India's food processing sector is expected to be worth over half a trillion dollars by 2025.

"To grow more streams of revenue, the best time to tap investment opportunities in Indian agriculture sector is now!" added the PM.

He also noted the other sectors potential for investments in India are healthcare, energy, infrastructure, civil aviation, defence and space among others.

Modi stated that there is big optimism when India rises in key business ratings, particularly the Ease of Doing Business ratings of the World Bank.

In October last year, India jumped 14 places to reach the 63rd place among 190 nations in the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business ranking.

"Every year, we are reaching record highs in FDI. Each year is significantly higher than the earlier one. FDI inflows in India in 2019-20 were 74 billion dollars. This is an increase of 20 percent from the year before that," he informed the American business firms.

"In the middle of COVID, India has attracted foreign investment of more than 20 billion dollars between April and July 2020," added the Indian PM.

Making a final pitch to the US business community, Modi said: "The rise of India means: a rise in trade opportunities with a nation that you can trust, a rise in global integration with increasing openness, a rise in your competitiveness with access to a market which offers scale. And a rise your returns on investment with the availability of skilled human resources."

(Image:Videograb)