Investors restless, Finance Minister defends pace

India must tackle its crumbling infrastructure, stifling red tape and lay out clear policies if it is to attract the billions of dollars of outside investment it sorely needs, foreign bosses said on the fringes of a high-profile summit.

The so-called “Davos of the East”, a gathering of hundreds of politicians and businessmen in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat, seeks to pitch India as a major investment destination at a time of lacklustre global markets. One Canadian chief executive on the condition of anonymity said, “A majority of the CEO’s ... said we want to do business in India but are hesitant to enter the Indian markets till the government tackles the problem of crumbling infrastructure”.

By the government’s own reckoning, India needs $800 billion a year in investments to accelerate economic growth to seven per cent from closer to five per cent, said financial services secretary Hasmukh Adia.

“We understand that there is business to be done and money can be made in India, but the process of achieving these goals requires government support,” said the head of a US-based pharmaceutical company who requested anonymity, adding one requires a clean defined policy framework.