'Poor infrastructure impeding industrial growth'

NEW DELHI: Conceding that infrastructure and procedural bottlenecks are major growth hurdles, the Economic Survey on Friday warned the investment in the economy were much below neighbouring China and East Asia casting doubts about attaining 10 per cent industrial growth envisaged in the Tenth Plan.

"The outlook for the industrial sector will further brighten if constraints like infrastructure bottlenecks and shortages, labour market rigidities, entry and exit barriers, land acquisition and multiple stages of approvals are removed," the survey presented in the Parliamant on Friday said.

Appreciating over eight per cent growth recorded in first nine months of 2004-05, the Survey suggested a better coordination between Centre and the states, removal of entry barriers and aggressive push to dereservation of items from the list of SSIs to brighten the outlook.

The survey also lauded the reforms and sound economic fundamentals for the strength of industrial growth and said the investment in the sector is picking up.

"The strength and robustness of industrial growth in the current fiscal despite shocks like Tsunami, deficient monsoon and a third oil shock is not just a matter of good fortune but also a response to the reforms and manifestation of the sound fundamentals of the economy," the survey said.

It said India is ready for a big push as the growing interest of foreign investors is coinciding with the riding confidence of domestic private investors.