There is no proposal to impose restrictions on foreign direct investment (FDI) in the retail sector, Parliament was informed today.
“There is no proposal to impose restrictions on FDI in the retail and agriculture sector in the country,” Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
The reply assumes significance as the Minister had earlier said the Government will not “entertain” foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail trading.
India permits 51 per cent FDI in multi-brand retail and 100 per cent overseas investments in the single retail sector.
Replying to a separate question on the free trade agreement, she said India and the European Union are currently negotiating a bilateral broad-based Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA).
“So far 15 rounds of negotiations have been held. The last engagement between both sides was held in May 2013 in New Delhi. Since then, the EU had largely disengaged from the negotiation. However, recently a meeting was held between both sides to take stock,” she said.