New Delhi: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday called upon the US industry to take advantage of the scale, opportunities and recent reforms in India by investing in sectors as diverse as space and healthcare.
Addressing the India Ideas Summit hosted by the US-India Business Council via video conferencing, Modi said that there has never been a better time to invest in India.
“India is contributing towards a prosperous and resilient world through the clarion call of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’. And for that, we await your partnership,” he said.
“Today, there is global optimism towards India. This is because India offers a perfect combination of openness, opportunities and options. Let me elaborate. India celebrates openness in people and in governance. Open minds make open markets. Open markets lead to greater prosperity. These are principles on which both India and the US
agree,” the Prime Minister said.
Modi also said that India is emerging as a land of opportunities. “Recently, an interesting
report came out in India. It said that for the first time ever, there are more rural internet users than even urban internet users. Imagine the scale. There are about half a billion active internet users in India now. Half a billion connected people. Does this sound huge
to you? Hold your breath…
“Because, there are over half a billion more people who are being connected. Opportunities in technology also include opportunities in the frontieres of 5G, Big data analytics, Quantum computing, Block-chain and internet of things.”
Modi cited sectors such as agriculture, aviation, insurance and finance, defence and space, among others, which offer long-term sustainable returns.
“India has done historic reforms in the agriculture sector recently. There are investment opportunities in agricultural inputs and machinery, agriculture supply chain management, ready-to-eat items, and fisheries and organic produce.
India’s food processing sector is expected to be worth over half a trillion dollar by 2025.
“To grow more streams of revenue, the best time to tap investment opportunities in tge agriculture sector is now. India invites you to invest in healthcare. The healthcare sector in India is growing faster than 22 per cent every year,” he said.