By IANS,
New Delhi : India may ease foreign investment rules in defence production to give a thrust to manufacturing and exports of defence equipment, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath indicated Tuesday.
“India can become a great manufacturer of defence items. So, we would like to see some easing up there,” Kamal Nath told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of business leaders with the visiting Belgian King Albert II.
He said the government would soon decide on the relaxation of foreign investment rules.
Despite the global financial crisis, India continued to attract foreign investment, he said, adding there was 137 percent increase in foreign investment to $17.21 billion in the first half this fiscal over the corresponding period last year.
In September, investment went up 259 percent to $2.56 billion.