India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said the government would take an early view on relaxing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) norms in railways and construction.

He told reporters on the sidelines of an event here Friday that the discussions were on in this regard.

“Finance minister, myself and urban development minister will be sitting together. My ministry has already moved a cabinet note. We will take an early view,” he said when asked about the proposed relaxation of FDI norms in construction sector.

He hoped that more FDI would come into other manufacturing sectors including defence which has already been opened up. He pointed in telecom sector Vodafone has already come while single brand retail has attracted $3 billion FDI.

Sharma said in multi brand retail, the first proposal that is Tesco-Tata Trent was approved.

“There will be more. You have to wait. These are business decisions. The government can only put in place the policy,” he said when asked if another proposal will be approved soon.

The minister said out of $296 billion of FDI which came into India since 2000, $173 billion came in during last four years excluding this year.

“If this year is included, UPA II will see more than $220 billion FDI. These are hard numbers which speak for themselves,” he said while expressing surprise over the remarks made by BJP president Rajnath Singh on the government’s performance while reacting to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s press conference.

“He (Rajnath Singh) should be worried because today other numbers have published which expose the false claims. Gujarat is at number six from the bottom when it comes to industrial production and development,” Sharma said.

  construction, FDI, railways