Investment in Goa shrinking: Assocham

Even as Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar has said on repeated occasions that investments in the state had grown over the last four years, a report by Assocham has begged to differ.

The apex industry body, in a study titled 'Goa: Economic and Investment scenario', has said that there was lack on investor confidence in the state and that investments had in fact dipped considerably.

"Goa has virtually failed to attract investments as year-on-year growth rate for inflow of new investments dipped to about nine per cent in 2015-16 from over 91 per cent in 2014-15, probably due to a fluid economic situation prevailing in the state," a statement issued by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India on Wednesday said.

It added that nearly 58 per cent of the investments were under different stages of implementation.

The study also calls for a better strategy for growth and fiscal management, while also suggesting that the state government must pay special importance to identifying factors that would stimulate private investments as it is one of the principal drivers of growth.

"Predictability and stability is an important condition for continuous flow of investments and looking at this trend, it seems both are seriously lacking in Goa," says the report prepared by the Economic Research Bureau of Assocham.

"Outstanding investment growth rate had fallen to 7.5 per cent in 2015-16 from over 23 per cent in 2014-15," the report said, adding that barring 2014-15, there had been no other period in the last six years wherein the outstanding investments growth had been able to touch double digits.

"Declining investments into power sector can dampen the spirits of investor community as energy consumption is positively linked to economic growth, especially manufacturing constituents like cement and steel," noted the study.

--IANS

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