Tremendous scope for Australian investment into India: Minister

Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday said that there is tremendous scope for Australian investment into India as the country eases FDI norms and opens up different sectors.

Addressing the CII's session on 'Enhancing India Australia Bilateral Economic and Trade Relationship', the Minister for Railways, Commerce and industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public distribution said India has opened up the agriculture sector for greater investments in food processing and value addition.

The Minister also launched 'India-Australia Economic Strategy Report'.

Accordingly, Goyal said that India is continuously trying to make FDI policies more facilitative, congenial and supportive of foreign investment.

He said that newer areas like space, nuclear energy and defence production will open up good opportunities for Indo-Australian mutual engagement.

Emerging sectors of defence, sports, textiles, textile designing, digital gaming, animation, water management, commercial ship-building, space collaboration and digital engagement in education, hold great promise in our efforts to balance this trade relationship, he mentioned.


Besides, Goyal said that recent labour reforms will also enable a new ecosystem for labour regulations and flexibility in employment.

Areas like tourism, he cited will generate a lot of jobs in India under the new framework, and will make tourism projects in India more viable.

"We wish to ensure that the farmers of India get even greater incomes which would only be possible with more value-added on our farm produce and greater engagement with the rest of the world, to meet the needs of the international community," the Minister added.


Furthermore, he said that in the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic, the focus of the industry, which had been to bring back economic activity, is yielding very good results and the economy is showing a V-shaped recovery.

"India has utilised the opportunity thrown up by Covid-19 to further liberalise our economy and make it easier to do business in India.

"We are one of the most open economies today particularly with FDI in automatic route up to 100 per cent in almost all sector expect," Goyal added. - IANS