Japanese businesses can capitalize on India's ongoing economic reforms and invest more there in infrastructure sectors, according to a senior Indian economic policy planner.
Nand Kishore Singh, of the Indian government's Planning Commission, said he wanted to see Japan-India trade triple to $10 billion in several years.
Singh said he wanted to see an increase in Indian exports to Japan of such products as computer software, pharmaceuticals and bio- and nano-tech products.
Singh, former economic adviser to Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, was in Tokyo earlier this week to attend a symposium organized by the Foreign Ministry titled "India: an Emerging Global Power -- Strategy for Japan-India Cooperation in the Coming Age."
"(The) Indian economy is undergoing major changes and we expect this year's GDP growth to be in the region of 7 percent plus . . . with a very healthy foreign-exchange position. This trend is likely to continue for five years or more in terms of midterm projections," Singh told a group of reporters.
Citing India's stepped-up deregulation and economic reforms, he said his nation offers investment opportunities for Japanese businesses in infrastructure, including port facilities, telecommunications, power generation and civil aviation, where deregulation efforts are under way.