British investment in India will hinge on environmental issues

R P Bhattacharya in Calcutta

Oh well, that's how it is -- John Major, prime minister of England, comes to India to attend a seminar of industrialists -- and goes back home much impressed by the Indian tiger population.

Major's speech on January 9 at the Partnership Summit in Calcutta, a two-day seminar organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry, seemed to indicate that this country's track record in the fields of environment and child labour are major off-putting factors for British investors.

'I am a vigorous advocate of trade,' Major said in his speech. 'But not in all things -- trade must have a heart, and a conscience, as well as profit. And I very much regret the sad fact, for example, that the tiger has become one of the most endangered animals in the world today, as they are slaughtered indiscriminately,' the British premier said inter alia.

A non sequitor, if ever there was one -- after all, what has the tiger got to do with Indian industry?

Major explains, by pointing out that the great forests of India provide a home for 80 per cent of the world's remaining tiger population. 'So I welcome warmly the steps which India is taking to tackle the problem of the rapid decimation of the tiger population. More needs to be done. But we will continue to work urgently with India and indeed with the International community to help find a solution to this subject,' the premier said.

One way of looking at this is as a reflection of Major's love for animals. Analysts, however, prefer to see in it a veiled warning: "The tiger issue is just an example. The British prime minister has indicated quite intelligently that environment issues will always figure in every investment discussion, at least with British industrialists," one wellknown businessman told Rediff On The NeT.

Another issue that is of major concern for foreign investors, if Major's keynote address is any indication, is that of child labour. Major clearly stated that in the present effort of globalising the economy, the child labour issue was one of the most disturbing.

India accounts for almost 30 per cent of the world's child labour force. 'India needs to tackle this problem, sincerely and immediately,' the British premier said.

Major's words have to be viewed in context of the fact that he will face a general election in a few months and, under pressure as he is from the green lobbies in Europe, feels the need to champion these issues from every available platform.

What worries Indian industrialists, meantime, is the timing of the speech. The British investment in India, now totalling three billion pounds per annum, is expected to grow by 50 per cent of that figure by 2000 -- and the Partnership Summit just ended is seen as one of the factors aiding that growth. The feeling among Indian industrialists, thus, is that Major on behalf of the British investor is seeking to impose preconditions on Indian industry.