DPIIT holds discussions with stakeholders to further promote FDI

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade on Wednesday held consultations with stakeholders, including law firms, on ways to further improve the business climate for overseas investors and attract more FDI into the country, an official said.

The official said the department sought views on making India a preferred destination for FDI (foreign direct investment).

The issues being flagged by law firms included permitting e-commerce players to allow FDI in inventory-based models of online trade for export purposes only; easing press note 3 by defining beneficial ownership; and some tweaking the policy for single-brand retail trading.

Under this press note, government approval is mandatory for investors from countries sharing land borders with India in any sector.

An industry official said that taking these measures would help MSMEs, besides attracting more FDI into the country. "The DPIIT was seeking our views on ways to increase FDI and make India a preferred destination for investments," the official noted.

In the consultation, representatives of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), government departments, industry chambers, CII, and advisory and law firms participated. After the consultations, the participants were asked to provide their input in writing. Another such meeting with the industry is expected on January 14 here.

Foreign direct investment inflows into India have crossed the $1 trillion milestone in the April 2000-September 2024 period.

The key sectors attracting the maximum of these inflows include the services segment, computer software and hardware, telecommunications, trading, construction development, automobile, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

The investment in India rose by 45 per cent year-on-year to $29.79 billion in April-September this fiscal on healthy inflows in services, computer, telecom and pharma sectors, according to government data.