Expecting FDI to increase to $100 billion per annum in coming years: DPIIT Secy

India is receiving foreign direct investments (FDI) of $70-80 billion every year and is expected to hit $100 billion per annum in the coming years, a top government official said on Wednesday.

Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Amardeep Singh Bhatia said the department is also streamlining approval processes for FDI applications.

The government has taken a series of measures to promote investments in the country such as easing the norms in sectors such as defense, railways, insurance, and telecom.

"We are targeting much higher investment flows. We have about $70 billion to $80 billion which is coming in every year. But we are expecting this to increase to at least $100 billion a year in the years to come," he told reporters here.

Bhatia said FDI in most sectors is permitted through under the automatic route, barring a few that still remain in the restricted category.

The overseas inflows in the last 10 years (2014-24) stood at $667.4 billion as against $304.1 billion during 2004-14.

The FDI equity inflow reported in manufacturing sectors in the last 10 financial years (2014-24) was $165.1 billion, an increase of 69 percent as compared to $97.7 billion received during the previous 10 financial years (2004-14).

Automobiles, telecommunications and pharmaceuticals were the sectors that saw the highest FDI.

Speaking at the briefing, Additional Secretary in the DPIIT Himani Pande said during the first quarter of this fiscal year, India attracted FDI worth $22.49 billion as against $17.56 billion in April-June 2023-24.

"So I think, we are going towards a better trajectory as compared to last year. There has been a continuous effort for liberalising FDI," she said.

According to DPIIT, defence contracts worth billions of dollars were awarded to Indian companies like Tata, L&T, and Bharat Forge, fostering a growing ecosystem of defense manufacturing.

"While challenges remain in areas such as job creation and SME growth, the Make in India initiative has significantly enhanced India's industrial capacity and export competitiveness over the last decade," it said.