DIPP holds stakeholders' consultation meet on FDI policy

The DIPP today held a stakeholders' consultation meet with representatives from industry chambers and law firms on the next edition of its consolidated FDI policy document.
"All the representatives gave their suggestions on sectors including single brand retail, defence and e-commerce related issues. Few of the suggestions could be incorporated in the next document," sources said.
The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) will come out with the next edition of the Consolidated FDI Policy Circular 2015 on March 31 or April 1. It would incorporate all the changes made over the past one year.
A Ficci retail committee official, who attended the meeting, said that further clarification was sought from the department on the single-brand retail sector.

Swedish furniture retail major IKEA has sought some changes in the sourcing clause of the single-brand retail sector.
Representatives from CII, Ficci, Deloitte, Khaitan and E&Y, among others, participated in the meeting.

The DIPP, which is under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, is the nodal agency on FDI policy. It compiles all policies related to India's FDI regime into a single document to make it simple and easy for investors to understand.
Investors would otherwise have to go through various press notes issued by the industry department and the RBI regulations to understand the policy. The government updates the policy every year.

FDI is considered crucial for economic development and the government has taken several steps to attract such funds.
Last year, the government relaxed norms in several sectors including railways, defence and medical devices sector.
FDI inflows during April-November of the current financial year grew by 22 per cent to USD 18.88 billion from USD 15.45 billion in the same period a year earlier.
India is projected to require about USD 1 trillion to fund infrastructure such as ports, airports and highways.