New Delhi, Mar 21: The Government has put in place a 'liberal and transparent' Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy which was reviewed from time to time to allow sector specific FDIs through inter-ministerial consultations, the Rajya Sabha was informed today.

Answering Mrs N P Durga on FDI policy, Minister of State for Commerce Ashwani Kumar said in a written reply that the Government had allowed FDI upto 51 per cent in retail trade for single brand products and all the products have to be sold under one brand even if it were to be sold internationally. Single brand product retailing would cover only products which are branded during manufacturing.

He said retail of single brand products will encourage investments in production and marketing, improve the availability of such goods for the consumer, encourage increased sourcing of goods from India and will help enhance competitiveness of Indian enterprises through access to global designs, technologies and management practices.

The Government had entrusted a reputed research organisation, Indian Council for International Economic Research, to conduct a comprehensive impact assessment of participation of large foreign and domestic companies in retail sector with reference to small scale retailers and vendors.

To another question, he said the Government agreed in principle, with the recommendation of the consultative committee of Parliament to commission a study on impact of FDI in the rural economy. The agency for undertaking the study and its terms of reference and time frame for the report was yet to be finalised.


UNI