India developing land twice Luxembourg's size for firms moving out of China, says report
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Luxembourg is spread across 2,43,000 hectares. To this end, a total area of 4,61,589 hectares has been identified across the country for the purpose, a Bloomberg report said.
Land has been one of the biggest obstacles for companies looking to invest in India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government have been working with states to change that as investors seek to reduce reliance on China as a manufacturing base in the aftermath of the coronavirus outbreak and the resultant supply disruption.
A land pool nearly double the size of Luxembourg, hence, is reportedly being developed in India in order to lure businesses moving out of China.
Luxembourg is spread across 2,43,000 hectares. To this end, a total area of 4,61,589 hectares has been identified across the country for the purpose, a Bloomberg report said.
This area includes 1,15,131 hectares of existing industrial land in states such as Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
Providing land with power, water and road access may help attract new investments to an economy that was slowing even before the coronavirus hit, and is now staring at a rare contraction as a nationwide lockdown hit consumption.
According to the report, the government has further hand-picked ten sectors -- electrical, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, electronics, heavy engineering, solar equipment, food processing, chemicals and textiles -- as focus areas for promoting manufacturing.
Invest India, the government's investment agency, has received inquiries mainly from Japan, the US, South Korea and China. The four countries are among India's top 12 trading partners, accounting for total bilateral trade of $179.27 billion.
Furthermore, states have been separately urged to evolve their own programmes for bringing in foreign investments. The prime minister held a meeting on April 30 to discuss steps to fast-track strategies for wooing investors.