<Investments>Japanese heading South?(South India that is)
Japanese firms prefer to head south, says envoy
Our Bangalore Bureau
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9 DECEMBER
JAPANESE private sector firms consider south Indian states the best destination for investment, the country's ambassador to India Hiroshi Hirabayashi has said. Participating in an interactive session organised by the Greater Mysore Chamber of Industry (GMCI), Mr Hirabayashi said Japan was increasing its interest in India and its companies' presence was steadily rising in the country, particularly in Bangalore. Though the southern states offer excellent business environment, insufficient infrastructure posed a major problem, he said.
A survey carried out by the Japanese Exim Bank last year indicated that prospective Japanese buyers see India as the second most attractive investment destination in long-term prospective, he said. However, in the medium-term prospective, India ranks fifth, he added.
According to Mr Hirabayashi, Japanese investors faced three obstacles while coming into India for investing. These are poor infrastructure, red-tapism and slow reforms.
Mr Hirabaya-shi said the Japanese economy, which has registered negative growth during the last seven years, was set to record positive growth by the next fiscal. He claimed that despite economic recession, his country had been helping India.
He said Japan had to impose sanctions and suspend soft loans to India after the nuclear tests, a decision it took with great reluctance. However, he said that sanctions would not cover the private sector in Japan, which had been investing in parts of India.
As part of providing aid for developing infrastructure, Japan had funded the $205-million drinking water project in Bangalore, which would commence soon, he said.
Mr Hirabaya-shi said his country was interested in funding sericulture projects in Karnataka to enhance productivity and production of quality silk yarn.
Though the practice of sericulture had declined in Japan in recent years, it still has a surplus of experts in that field, he said. India could make use of that expertise in developing the quality of silk, he added. He hoped very soon the quality of Indian silk would be comparable with that of China.
GMCI vice president, MK Ramachandra said Japan to encourage private investments in Karnataka and sought Mr Hirabayashi's help in exchanging trade delegations between Japan and Karnataka.
economictimes.com
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