Bureaucracy and corruption are two main aspects affecting the ease of doing business in India, according to the Business Climate Survey covering Norwegian businesses in the country.
The poll also revealed that 62 per cent Norwegian firms consider the present business climate favourable in India, whereas 75 per cent consider the investment climate to be more favourable in the coming three years.
83 out of the 101 Norwegian firms registered in India participated in the survey.
Norwegian Ambassador to India Nils Ragnar Kamsvag told PTI that the survey reflects the mood among the Norwegian companies to invest in India, adding that it was "no surprise" that bureaucracy and corruption were the two "biggest hurdles" for Norwegian companies investing in India.
However, he mentioned that the survey was conducted before the Indian Government announcing demonetisation of higher denomination currency on November 8.
The poll observed that increasing salaries is the most critical issue among the workforce in India.
According to the survey, 70 per cent Norwegian firms want to grow market for their line of business in India, while 68 per cent believe that India is a strategic location for R&D.
Moreover, 55 per cent companies believe that the Indian market is lucrative for start ups.
The survey was conducted by the Norwegian Business Association India (NBAI) & Royal Norwegian Consulate General, Mumbai in collaboration with the Commercial section of Royal Norwegian Embassy, Delhi for the first time, to assess the current and near future business climate for Norwegian companies with specific focus on the Maritime sector.
India has been described as the "only bright spot" on the global economic scenario. Norwegian companies have been present in India for long, covering areas like maritime, oil & gas, fisheries & aquaculture, ICT, health and renewable, among many others.
Maritime sector being the most important for Norway in India, the survey has a dedicated report about different aspects of this sector including inland waterways, coastal shipping, ship design & building, sustainable shipping etc.
The Norwegian maritime companies are very optimistic (96% of them) about the sector growing in next 5 years.
However, they don't see any recovery in commercial shipbuilding. The survey revealed that defence shipbuilding provides a silver lining for the ship-building sector.
The growth in maritime sector will largely be driven by modernisation and mechanisation of ports; development of inland waterways and coastal shipping; sustainable shipping initiatives like promoting LNG fuelled vessels.
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