Himalayan News Service

Kolkata, January 14:

Ashok Jha, secretary, department of industrial policy and promotion, ministry of commerce and industry of India has said that India’s GDP growth will average at around 5 per cent per annum for the next 50 years.

While addressing a roundtable on prospects of investments in India at the 11th Partnership Summit organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), he stated that higher growth rates achieved after the liberalisation of Indian economy ensures sustained growth in the coming years.

Jha stated that India’s share in the world GDP is going to reach to 16 per cent from two per cent within a few years time. This is because India stands now as the fourth largest economy in terms of PPP (purchasing power parity).

He said that the export import percentage of GDP has increased from 18 per cent to 32 per cent in only few years time. Investments in the pipeline are worth $120 billion in the power sector, $35 billion in the highways, and $20 billion in civil aviation infrastructure, Jha informed.

Replying to “Why should one think about investing in India, rather than elsewhere?,” Jha said that “India is an old country but a young nation”. There is a huge domestic demand in many sectors that is growing fast. He claimed that 75 per cent of the multinational companies (MNCs) investing in India are reaping profits.

Jha suggested few sectors where investments are potentially lucrative for multinationals.

In textiles, there is a potential of capturing 15 per cent of the global trade which now languishing at a mere 3.5 per cent. Other sectors that have potential are pharmaceuticals, cement, steel, biotech and of course IT. Speaking on the occasion, Jamshed N Godrej, chairman and managing director of Godrej and Boyce Manufacturing Ltd, said that CII had been working long to promote India and to facilitate both foreign and Indian investment.