India is riskier for business than Bangladesh, according to this index

A London-based risk analysis firm could make Prime Minister Narendra Modi rethink his plan to pitch India as a global business destination.

India ranks 4 in Verisk Maplecroft's list of countries losing out on business opportunities due to civil unrest, after Syria, Yemen and Libya.

The Civil Unrest Index that ranks almost 200 countries in terms of their exposure to protests, mass demonstrations, ethnic or religious violence comes after a World Bank report this year put India at the 130th position in the ease of doing business rankings.




France which has been grappling with political protests and has seen major terror strikes in last two years stands at 16th position. No European country is in the top ten positions. Bangladesh at 7th rank is better placed than India. Even Nigeria, which is struggling with militant group Boko Haram’s menace, stands at 10th position, six places ahead of India.

Maplecroft states that it is striking that India, Brazil, France, Mexico and South Africa, which have all witnessed substantial disorder in the last year, lack adequate structures to avoid grievances escalating into wholesale protests.

In May 2016, according to an assessment by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), over 30 steps have been already taken by various ministries and departments to cut down on clearances and improve the business environment. Separately, states are also being assessed on implementation of reform measures.

While Modi government has been aggressively projecting the country as an untapped business platform to bring more and more foreign investments, the report stands as a dampener for its dreams.

The BJP has been often slammed of not using its political ingenious in handling disruptions. Following a recent unrest in Kashmir, Modi government was criticized for not demonstrating any capacity for a political conversation.

The results of the index are compiled from a survey that assigned scores and importance to a range of different factors. How frequent is unrest?

What's been the impact in the past, from damage to property to actual deaths? What instruments are used to tackle discontent? What are the underlying economic conditions, from cost of living to inflation? Are government subsidies on fuel and food being cut? These factors are considered drivers to civil disruption.