100% airport FDI too may have to pass security check

Foreign investment in airports could soon come under the watch of security agencies even though 100% FDI in greenfield projects is allowed under the automatic route. Responding to concerns of the home ministry and various other departments, a new suggestion is now under discussion to alert security agencies as soon as foreign investment starts flowing into airport projects.
The commerce & industry ministry has said that the Reserve Bank should inform the department of industrial policy & promotion (DIPP) as soon as the first installment of foreign investment flows in. The DIPP would in turn alert the home ministry and the security agencies so that they can evaluate the investment from the national security point of view.
This suggestion from the commerce & industry ministry and a host of other initiatives would be discussed at a high-level meeting on national security concerns related to foreign investment, highly-placed government sources said. A committee of secretaries would look into these issues next week, the sources said.
The high-level panel, which includes top bureaucrats from ministries like home, finance, defence, commerce, aviation, DIPP and shipping would also look into national security concerns related to key infrastructure areas.
09/11/09 G Ganapathy Subramaniam & Nirbhay Kumar/Economic Times

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Categories: Airports Nov 2009, Foreign Nov 2009