Foreign direct investment has increased “steadily” in the country with total capital inflows reaching $208.99 billion during April 2014 to December 2017 period, a Union minister said today. The main sectors that received maximum foreign inflows include services, computer software and hardware, telecommunications, construction, trading and automobile. “A total FDI of USD 208.99 billion from April 2014 to December 2017 has been received,” Minister of State for Commerce and Industry C R Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
In a separate reply, he said the number of functional export oriented units (EOU) has reduced to 2,197 so far in 2017-18 from 2,239 in 2016-17. The number of functional units in 2015-16 was 2,269 and 2,293 in the previous fiscal, he added. “On the recommendations of the Public Accounts Committee…a committee under the development commissioner Kandla SEZ (special economic zone) has been constituted on February 6 to identify the shortcomings of EOU scheme.
The committee would also conduct a comparative study of the benefits accrued to SEZ units and EOUs to find out the reasons for shifting of export oriented units to special economic zone sector and suggest remedial actions.
