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The current Chinese crisis offers a renewed opportunity for development and economic growth to India which stands out as a viable investment destination, the CEO of a group that aims to boost Indo-US ties has said.
Ron Somers, a long time India watcher who drove business community's relationship between the two countries for years, believes there is a renewed confidence arising of India and the current Chinese crisis offers an opportunity for development and economic growth.
"There is a renewed confidence arising across all of India - indeed, across the entire region - due to the commanding leadership being projected by Prime Minister Narendra Modi," Somers, CEO and founder of India First Group, told PTI in an interview.
Based in Washington DC, India First Group is a strategic advisory firm assisting US companies as they invest in India and assisting Indian companies as they invest in North America. Before establishing India First Group, Somers was president of the US-India Business Council (USIBC).
Having recently returned from India from a two-week business development mission, Somers said it becomes very clear to any observer that in the next several months India's long-awaited Goods and Services Tax (GST) legislation is likely to get cleared, paving way for a more streamlined tax regime that will boost commerce.
Building on India's recent opening of the insurance sector, this legislation will have very positive consequences.
"The Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is well-seized of the issue of providing clarity on retroactive taxation. With these positive signals and legislative activities coming from India, investors are heartened," he said.
Somers said Modi's "Make in India" initiative is evolving into a new campaign: "Innovate in India", which will serve to attract Research and Development (R&D) and investment across the spectrum of technologies.
