Govt inertia hurdle in attracting investment: Ratan Tata

Leading industrialist Ratan Tata, who will retire later this month, is clearly disappointed in the way Prime Minister (PM) Manmohan Singh is running his government at a time when industrial growth has skidded into the slow lane.

Tata, who in July in an emotional outburst leapt to the PM's and taken his critics to task, appears to be let down by the subsequent drift that has continued to bedevil policy-making at the highest level.

In a rare interview to the Financial Times of London, Tata pointed out that the government's inaction is driving investment away from India and forcing industrialists to look for overseas opportunities.

The chairman of the $100 billion salt-to-steel conglomerate told the British paper that his Group plans to look at other emerging economies for growth over the next decade.

A candid Tata is reported to have openly criticised Singh's style of functioning. "You may have the Prime Minister's office saying one thing and maybe one of the ministers having a different view. That doesn't happen in most countries," the daily quoted him as saying.

"You wouldn't have a seven- or eight-year wait to get clearance for a steel plant. Different agencies in the government have almost contradictory interpretations of the law or interpretations of what should be done," he is reported to have said. The industry mogul added, "These are things which by and large would drive investors away in most other countries and in some of those countries they are practised and they don't see investment."

Tata told the paper that the government's inability to take decisions is holding back growth plans of his group companies such as Tata Steel and Tata Power. He highlighted the contrast between the Chinese government, which promotes industry, and the Indian government, which holds back growth.

This inertia in implementing decisions is also preventing expansion in new sectors such as defence, which has been thrown open to private investors, he further added. "The defence sector could be the new growth sector of India, but it probably won't be," he is reported to have lamented.

"So, in that sense, you start looking for geographies where you can make a difference. I've always been very bullish about India's potential and I still am," he said.

Courtesy: Mail Today