Create conducive investment environment to boost growth: RBI

The Reserve Bank today pitched for creation of a conducive environment for investment and faster clearances of projects to boost economic growth which slowed to a decade low of 5% in the previous fiscal.

"Key to reinvigorating growth is accelerating investment by creating a conducive environment for private investment, improving project clearance and implementation and leveraging on the crowding-in role of public investment," RBI Governor D Subbarao said in the mid-quarter monetary policy review.

The continuing weakness in manufacturing activity needs to be urgently reversed, he added.

The growth of industrial production decelerated to 2.3% in April after picking up in the preceding month.

The RBI said that all constituent categories of industry have slowed, with a persistent contraction in mining activity.

"The sharp weakening in the growth of capital goods production points to still damped investment demand whereas a pick-up in consumer non-durables could be indicative of a fragile return of consumer confidence," the RBI said.

On the domestic front, RBI said, the last year's robust rabi production and the current monsoon performance so far augur well for growth prospects.

It further said the spatial and temporal distribution of rainfall over the next three months "will be crucial in determining the performance of agriculture". The onset of the south-west monsoon has been strong and on time.

Pulled down by poor performance of farm, manufacturing and mining sectors, economic growth slowed to 4.8% in January-March quarter and fell to a decade's low of 5% for 2012-13 against 6.2% in the previous fiscal year.

The newly set up Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) has cleared several large investment projects.