Brushing aside reports of murmurs of protest within the ruling alliance on his invitation to United States businessmen to invest in India, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said he will use every opportunity to 'sell' India and explain to the world what the country was doing.
"I am certainly here to sell India and to explain to the rest of the world what India is doing," he said. "As prime minister it is my duty and obligation, whenever I get an opportunity, to promote India," Singh said.
He said there was no question of opposition from "our party and from our coalition partners." The United Progressive Alliance government has a Common Minimum Programme which underlines the need for foreign direct investment in various sectors.
Singh said he had discussed the issue of foreign direct investment with CPI (M) leader Jyoti Basu and other leaders before his visit to the United States.
The bulk of the resources for India's development would continue to be mobilised domestically but, at the margin, there is scope to involve the world community, the prime minister said at a press conference in New York on Friday.
Speaking at the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday,
Singh had India needed $150 billion over the next 10 years for a 'quantum leap' in the infrastructure sector.
He said his government will seek to create in India a climate conducive to the greater flow of foreign direct investment.
Singh said there was complete agreement on this between him and Basu and others.
Underlining the government's determination to implement an inclusive economic and social agenda, Singh pointed out that Congress President Sonia Gandhi heads the National Advisory Council in which some of the most active social workers and social activists are involved.
"It is my hope to enlist the maximum possible cooperation of all thinking segments of our society," he said.
Seeking cooperation from Non-Resident Indians in the development of the country, the prime minister said: "We would like them to be more actively involved in promoting direct investment."
He said NRIs, the 'brain bank' for India, could explain the Indian point of view to American legislators and others in public life that 'the sky is the limit.'
"We welcome the involvement of all NRIs in India's development," he said.
Singh said there has been a 'sea change' in the economic situation in the country and the attitude towards investors since 1991.
"If you look back to the situation in 1991 and the situation today, I think there is a sea change in the economic situation and the attitude of investors.
"Last year, India had a flow of about $15 billion from almost nothing in 1991. It is an indication that the winds of change are blowing in our country," the prime minister said.