Chidambaram has expressed his confidence about the success of the measure.
Finance Minister of India, P. Chidambaram, has made insurance news by promising further reforms for the country and has expressed his confidence that the FDI bills for the insurance and pension industries will be passed by Parliament, in which he will soon hold an open dialogue with the country’s opposition parties.
He did point out
that there is still some debate and controversy over the topic.
But at the same time, the Finance Minister feels that it will be resolved and that foreign investors will be able to add a greater contribution to the industries. He stated that “There is a difference of opinion (on the issue of 49 per cent FDI in insurance). I intend to meet with the leaders of opposition and convince them. I can convince the opposition parties that this clause (of raising the FDI cap) can be kept.”
This was his first news announcement from the financial capital after taking his position.
Chidambaram also stated that he strongly believed that these two amendment bills were vital to the economy, and that he was seeking the cooperation of the media in order to help them be passed by Parliament.
When asked by an reporter whether he felt that additional reforms would take place following the second installment that had just been announced, the minister explained that he wasn’t even aware of the fact that this was being referred to as a second installment. In his opinion, the changes and evolutions in the country are ongoing and that there will, indeed, be more. He feels that there are many issues that have yet to be addressed and they won’t be cut off simply because some people feel that change occurs in a set number of stages.
Before making his insurance news release address, Chidambaram had spoken with D. Subbarao the RBI Governor, as well as other leaders in the central bank, representatives of mutual funds, members of the SEBI board, and representatives from additional financial institutions. The Standing Committee on Finance is hoping that the FDI cap be held at 26 percent, but the bill would raise this level to 46 percent.
