India promises all help to Thai investors

BANGKOK: India today wooed Thai investors, encouraging them to look at it "afresh" and promising all the help they need to set up businesses in the country which is focused on growth, development and trade.

The new government's vision for the southeast region is 'Act East' and this is backed with the mantra 'Red tape' to 'Red carpet', promising investors all the help they may require to set up businesses in India, said Amitabh Kant, Secretary Department of Industrial policy and promotion.

"The future for Thai companies is not Thailand but India," Kant, the brain behind the popular Incredible India tag line, told a crowded gathering of businessmen and Thai government officials here at a Roadshow on 'Make in India'.

Assuring the investors that "huge amount of energy is unfolding in India", Kant said, "If you want anything...any sector to be opened up tell us. Anything we can do for Thai investors please tell us."

Kant, who is also Chairman of the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor Corporation, acknowledged that Thailand had a sound manufacturing sector and India could learn a lot from it.

He also said that Indian companies should look at coming to Thailand. " Invest in Thailand to become a key driver in southeast region," he said, referring to using Thailand as a springboard to do trade with other countries in the region.

He talked at length about the new initiatives by the NDA government, saying that over the years doing business in India had become very complex but the new government had "made it easy to do business and invest in India".

Kant also talked about the upcoming smart cities project and the new corridors, saying "India is passing through a window of demographic transformation which rarely happen. There is technology, mobile technology everywhere. India's population will keep getting younger till 2040."

He gave examples of Technology driven through frugal engineering, eliciting cheers from the audience.

The meet was also attended by Achaka Sriboonruang, Minister of Industry of Thailand, Suvit Maesincee, Deputy Minister of Commerce, Noppadon Theppitak, Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, business delegation from India and top Thai government officials.

India's Ambassador to Thailand Harsh Vardhan Shringla said that both the countries had concluded an operational Early Harvest Scheme from 2004, covering 83 lines, under the bilateral Free Trade agreement.

Since then, bilateral trade had expanded by more than 4 times touching USD 9 billion in 2014-15, he said.