In contrast, Maharashtra's share rises to 40% ; Gujarat govt officials say they are not surprised as state has never been foreign investors' favourite.
If Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is any indicator of the economic success of a state, Gujarat, which takes pride in calling itself the ‘Growth Engine of India’, is surprisingly nowhere in the picture. The state’s share in FDI inflows in the country currently stands at a negligible 2.38%.
According to the department of industry policy & promotion, Gujarat attracted FDI of Rs3,294 crore in 2010-11, and had a 3.38% share of the FDI pie. The FDI inflows rose to Rs4,730 crore in 2011-12, but the state’s share came down to 2.85%. In 2012-13, the state attracted FDI of Rs2,470 crore as of January this year.
The fall in FDI inflows in 2012-13 was a countrywide trend, but the worrying thing is that the state’s share in foreign inflows has fallen further to a miniscule 2.38%. Gujarat’s rank among states attracting the highest FDI has fallen a notch from 5th last year to 6th.
Big Brother Maharashtra (to which Gujarat is often compared) continues to account for the maximum FDI inflows, with close to 40% share.
In fact, its share has been going up. Maharashtra’s share of FDI pie was 28.5% in 2010-11, which fell marginally to 27.2% in 2011-12. However, its share has gone up to a staggering 39.4% with FDI of Rs41,000 crore in 2012-13.
“The fall in FDI in Gujarat is a result of the overall slowdown in the West. And this trend is not limited to Gujarat alone,” said a senior official, requesting anonymity.
Delhi also slipped in attracting FDI, but it still has more than 16.4% share. Delhi attracted foreign investment of Rs17,020 crore between April 2012 and January 2013. Next are the three southern states.
Tamil Nadu attracted foreign direct investment of Rs11,850 crore in 2012-13, almost double as compared to the previous year, and jumped to third position. It overtook Andhra Pradesh, which attracted FDI of Rs5,635 crore, whereas Karnataka rounded the top five with foreign investment of Rs4,342 crore. Gujarat was just ahead of West Bengal, which attracted FDI of Rs1,934 crore in the first 10 months of 2012-13.
FDI inflows in the country as a whole fell by more than 30% in the first ten months of 2012-13 as against 2012-12. In the case of Gujarat, the fall seems to have been sharper, more than 50%. However, another senior official said that Gujarat has never been high on the list of foreign investors.
“The average FDI inflows in the state have been in the region of Rs3,00-4,000 crore over the past many years. The inflow has been lower this year due to economic concerns,” the official said.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}