Stuck FDI proposals may get approvals before Elon Musk’s visit to India

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The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has written to 17 government departments in order to expedite approvals for all FDI proposals awaiting government assent. According to reports, around 46 FDI proposals are in the pipeline. For the same, the government had given a time limit of 12 weeks, which has now expired.

According to a report by Business Standard, a person with knowledge of the matter said that DPIIT has written a letter requesting for early approval of these proposals, requesting immediate intervention from the Department of Economic Affairs of the Finance Ministry and related government departments to get these stuck FDI proposals approved at the earliest.

Applications for FDI proposals require security clearance from the Ministry of Home Affairs for investment proposals in sectors like broadcasting, telecommunications, satellite, defence, civil aviation etc. These proposals also include several FDI proposals from neighboring countries like China.

A spokesperson of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) said that it is responsible for considering the FDI applications received on the Foreign Investment Facilitation Portal through the National Single Window System portal and sending them to the concerned administrative ministry for decision.

Out of the 46 proposals stuck in all the ministries/departments, only 2 proposals pertain to the Department of Economic Affairs. They are being dealt with on priority basis with dialogue between ministries and discussions with stakeholders, as highlighted by the ministry.

Ahead of Musk’s visit to India in the upcoming weeks, the government has also notified new foreign direct investment limits for satellite related activities, thereby enabling foreign investors to ramp up their investments in this sector. As per news reports, this is set to benefit Musk’s satellite-based venture, Starlink.

Going ahead, up to 100% FDI will be allowed in the sector. Out of this, 74% can be undertaken via the automatic route for satellite manufacturing and operations, ground segment and user segment as well as satellite data products. Additionally, FDI of up to 49% under the automatic route will now be permissible for launch vehicles and associated systems or sub-systems and creation of spaceports for launching and receiving spacecrafts. However, investments beyond this limit will require government approvals.