Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has invited global investors to make India their preferred destination for manufacturing, research and development, global capability centres and emerging technologies. Addressing the inaugural session of the 31st CII Partnership Summit in Visakhapatnam today, Mr. Goyal said India offers open markets, growing capabilities and a reliable and predictable policy environment.
He said India has concluded nine free trade and preferential trade agreements in the last four to four-and-a-half years, covering 38 developed countries and providing access to markets representing around 60 trillion US dollars of global GDP.
Highlighting Andhra Pradesh, Mr. Goyal said the State is emerging as an important investment destination, with opportunities in advanced technology, drones, space, green hydrogen, data centres and research and development. He said Visakhapatnam is moving from traditional industries such as steel towards new-age sectors and technology, while its resilience in dealing with recent cyclones reflects its preparedness to host major business and investment events.
Mr. Goyal said India provides a cost-competitive environment for research, design and manufacturing, while ensuring protection of intellectual property and investments. He called upon global companies to invest in India and Andhra Pradesh and urged Indian industry to focus on sustainability, skilling and global quality standards. The summit, being held with the theme “Navigating the New World Order,” was inaugurated by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Union Ministers Piyush Goyal, Ram Mohan Naidu and State Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan.
Representatives of governments and businesses from several countries, along with leading industrialists and foreign diplomats, are participating in the summit. CII has called for greater international cooperation in emerging technologies and highlighted opportunities for India in semiconductors, solar panels, battery storage systems, electric vehicles and large-scale agricultural value chains. The summit aims to strengthen global investment partnerships and contribute to the goals of Viksit Bharat and Viksit Andhra Pradesh.
