Sitharaman invites Swedish businesses to build smart cities in India

India plans to spend Rs 100 lakh crore on building and upgrading public infrastructure over the next five years, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday and asked multinational corporations to participate in various upcoming greenfield and brownfield projects.

"We are looking at building more smart cities where Swedish businesses can contribute," she said while addressing the India-Swedish Business Summit here. "We have appointed a task force to track the pipeline of big-ticket projects."

Sitharaman said India has a decisive leadership which has undertaken radical structural reforms in various sectors of the economy. This has allowed businesses to prosper. The country is determined to further improve the ease of doing business, she added.

At the same time, India offers a huge market with large middle-class which is aspirational and has real purchasing power. "This offers immense opportunities for businesses," said Sitharaman.

Amid global trade wars and uncertainty surrounding the Brexit, India has slashed corporate tax rates for businesses to prosper. Many steps have been taken in banking, insurance, mining and other crucial sectors of the economy, she said.

India and Sweden have seen concrete outcomes in life sciences and other sectors which have benefitted both the countries. "The contribution made by businesses from Sweden is remarkable," she said.

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