JOIN USStrongly opposing FDI in multi-brand retail, the BJP on Saturday charged the UPA government with taking the decision at the behest of foreign pressure.
“Foreign investors will not enter the country for charity. They are after our markets, they want to make profit. Foreign Direct Investment in retail will result in largescale unemployment and will not benefit farmers. The BJP demands that the Centre immediately withdraw its decision on FDI,” BJP national spokesperson Prakash Javadekar told reporters here on Saturday.
Javadekar also rubbished the Centre’s claim that the state governments were free to take a decision on allowing FDI in retail in their respective jurisdictions. “India has signed bi-lateral investment agreement with 82 countries. In these agreement the entire country is taken as an unit. You cannot stop corporate entities from opening branches in states,” said Javadekar.
He said foreign investors had never shown interest in improving backend infrastructure.
“Ten years ago, the Centre had decided to allow FDI in backend infrastructure in agriculture and had anticipated investment to the tune of $40 billion, but not even 40 million flowed into the country,” he pointed out.
‘Nothing will change’
“The responsibility of improving backend infrastructure will remain with the government, while the foreign investors will take away profits,” he said.
Javadekar said restricting subsidised LPG to six will force an average family to shell out around Rs 2,000 more per annum. “An average family requires at least 12 LPG cylinders in a year and will have to buy six cylinders at market rate which will be around Rs 800 per cylinder,” he said.