Annual FDI inflows to India may rise to $100bn soon: DPIIT

New Delhi: The annual inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) to India is likely to increase to $100 billion in the coming years from an average of around $67 billion recorded in the past 10 years, a senior official said on Wednesday.

Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Amardeep Singh Bhatia said the government has taken a number of steps to streamline the approval process for FDI applications in the sectors like defence, railways, telecom and insurance.

Briefing media on completion of 10 years of Make-in-India initiative, Bhatia said the streamlining in approval process would further boost FDI inflows in the country. "We have about $70 billion to $80 billion which is coming in every year. But we are expecting this to increase to at least $100 billion a year in the years to come," he said.

According to Additional Secretary in the DPIIT Himani Pande, FDI inflows to India increased to $22.49 billion in the first quarter of the current financial year as against $17.56 billion recorded in the corresponding period of the last year. On the full financial year projection, Pande said, “we are going towards a better trajectory as compared to last year.”  

Cumulative FDI inflow to India increased to $667.4 billion during the period 2014 to 2024, which is 119% higher over the preceding decade (2004-14). FDI equity inflows into the manufacturing sector over the past decade (2014-24) increased to $165.1 billion, marking a 69% increase compared to the previous decade (2004 -14), which saw inflows of $97.7 billion, data shared by the DPIIT showed.

India allows upto 100% FDI under the automatic route in most of the sectors, except certain strategically important areas. The highest FDI inflows in India in the past one decade have come in the sectors like automobiles, telecommunications and pharmaceuticals. Prime Minister Narendra Modi government launched Make-in-India initiative in 2014 to boost domestic manufacturing in order to cut dependence on imports.  

“The Government of India is committed to encouraging ‘Make in India’ through all possible ways. India’s strides in reforms will also continue,” Modi wrote on social media platform X.

Bhatia claimed that the Make in India initiative has resulted in a significant enhancement in India's industrial capacity and export competitiveness over the last decade.

“As India moves into its next decade of growth, Make in India 2.0 focuses on furthering sustainability, innovation, and self-reliance. With strategic interventions in renewable energy, green technologies, and advanced manufacturing, the initiative is ensuring that Indian products meet the highest global standards,” the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.

According to the ministry, the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, which was introduced in 2020, has resulted in Rs 1.32 lakh crore ($16 billion) in investments and a significant boost in manufacturing output of Rs 10.90 lakh crore ($130 billion) as of June 2024. Over 8.5 lakh jobs have been created directly and indirectly due to the initiative, it said.