India received 120-130 FDI proposals from China since Apr

The government has received over 120 foreign direct investment (FDI) proposals worth about Rs 12,000 crore from China since April, when it was made mandatory for a company from countries sharing land border with India to invest in any sector only after getting government approval, sources said.

As per that decision, FDI proposals from China need government approval for investments in India in any sector.

An inter-ministerial committee has been formed by the government to scrutinise these proposals, they said adding most of the investments are for brownfield projects (means in existing Indian companies).

In April this year, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) came out with a press note stating that a company or an individual from a country that shares land border with India can invest in any sector here only after getting government approval.

The decision was taken to curb opportunistic takeovers or acquisitions of domestic firms due to the current COVID-19 pandemic.

"We have received 120-130 FDI proposals from China, worth about Rs 12,000 crore - Rs 13,000 crore," they added.

India received FDI from China worth $2.43 billion (Rs 15,526 crore) between April 2000 and September 2020.

Further sources said that certain Chinese companies have applied for registration for bidding in government contracts and those proposals has been sent to the home ministry.

There are no restrictions on Chinese firms for bidding in projects funded by multilateral institutions, they said.

Photograph: Thomas White/Reuters