Good governance will never deter investors, and confidence in the Indian economic growth story remains high despite a government crackdown on a handful of corporates for alleged violation of environmental norms, a top banker said today.
"I have not come across any concerns expressed by investors in my meetings with them. Good governance and actions taken transparently will only encourage investors, not deter them, from coming to India," HDFC Bank Managing Director Aditya Puri told PTI here.
The top private sector bank's chief was responding to a query that whether government action against mega-projects such as Posco's in Orissa and Lavasa in Maharashtra would have a deleterious effect on investor confidence.
"Some action against two-or-three projects will not affect investor confidence," Puri said, adding that there was a need for all business proposals to be approved transparently and speedily.
"If the projects are good enough, they will be approved. What is needed is clear and transparent policies and decisions to be taken without fear or favour."
The government, has, in the last few months, come down strongly on big corporates such as Vedanta, Posco and Lavasa, on the ground these entities had violated environmental norms. It had ordered stoppage of work at Lavasa, a township project promoted by Hindustan Construction Company near Pune, while conditional clearance has been given to Posco's mega steel project in Orissa.
"India presents a huge opportunity - it is growing at over 8 per cent and is poised for the same level of growth over the next few years. If there is good governance, then it will only encourage investors to come in," Puri said.
