New Delhi:
The Congress today ruled out any change in the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy to suit any particular company saying if Walmart goes, others will come.
"Why should the government think about it? The goverment has not made the policy for one business house. It's a national policy in an open world. If Walmart has gone, more marts are there. They will come," Congress spokesperson Raj Babbar said today.
The government's position came in response to the world's largest retailer today expressing its inability on meeting the sourcing norm in the multi-brand segment that requires 30 per cent procurement from small industries, stating it can procure only about 20 per cent. (
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The US Vice-President Joe Biden in his meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today is also reported to have flagged the issue of favourable environment for foreign investment in the country.
Several global retailers have also been raising concerns over the sourcing restriction in multi-brand retail.
In a meeting with Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma, the global chains had flagged the issue and demanded a change in the condition to 'preferably' from 'mandatory' as in the case of single-brand retail.
Although the government has permitted 51 per cent FDI in multi-brand retail about ten months back, no formal proposal has been received by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) yet.