After almost 11 months of signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian government, Foxconn is yet to make a major move on their $5 billion investment plan in Maharashtra. Reportedly, the company is yet to apply for land for its R&D facility, despite having the options of a 2,000-acre land in Khopoli (Raigad) and 600 acres in Chakan (Pune). The 1,50,000 sq. ft. of space leased in Navi Mumbai also sits idle and vacant.
Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) official said that it still awaits formal application for land from Foxconn and also no communication with regard to the commencement of production of mobile phones from Navi Mumbai facility has been made tothem.
Earlier their deadline to start operations in March was pushed to June. Foxconn also made a statement saying that the company intends to roll out their extensive plan for India in parts, over the next five years. The first step is to build a pilot site in Maharashtra, and it will start manufacturing by the end of this year.
With the PM’s plans for the upcoming smart cities like Bhubaneswar, this kind of a statement becomes even more crucial. Such investments from the global organization are pivotal to the PM’s plans such as the ‘Smart Cities‘ plan, the ‘Digital India‘ and the ‘Make in India’ plan.
The plan to invite corporations to start operating in India could potentially destroy and replace an entire sector related to back-ends in the country. Thus leading to an economic parity of India to the likes of the US.
The new FDI policy has already threatened the e-commerce ecosystem in India, as the feud between the likes of Amazon and Walmart is likely to start anytime soon. Such a situation makes for a healthy investment zone in any industry.
