Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as a source of funding has shrunk to a trickle for the once lucrative telecom sector with foreign investment inflows plunging to $43 million in the April-September period of the current fiscal.
FDI in the telecom sector, which includes radio paging, cellular mobile, basic telephone services, attracted $1.9 billion in April-September 2011, according to the latest data of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).
Experts said that besides the global economic slowdown, which has impacted the inflows, the sector is facing a lot of problems domestically.
"The overall health of the telecommunications sector is very critical. Industry is shrinking in terms of margins and profitability and that is the main reason why foreign investors are shying away," GSM industry body COAI Director General Rajan S Mathews said.
FDI in the telecom sector, which includes radio paging, cellular mobile, basic telephone services, attracted $1.9 billion in April-September 2011, according to the latest data of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).
Experts said that besides the global economic slowdown, which has impacted the inflows, the sector is facing a lot of problems domestically.
"The overall health of the telecommunications sector is very critical. Industry is shrinking in terms of margins and profitability and that is the main reason why foreign investors are shying away," GSM industry body COAI Director General Rajan S Mathews said.
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