‘Reform-oriented’, ‘Friendly govt': What the 5 CEOs said after meeting PM Modi | World News - Hindustan Times
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‘Reform-oriented’, ‘Friendly govt': What the 5 CEOs said after meeting PM Modi

Written by Shankhyaneel Sarkar | Edited by Poulomi Ghosh, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Sep 23, 2021 11:30 PM IST

PM Modi’s meeting with the five CEOs of different companies was directed at injecting fresh investment across several sectors to spur growth.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday met the CEOs of top global companies like Blackstone Group, Adobe, General Atomics, Qualcomm and First Solar in a bid to welcome more foreign investors in India.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi meeting CEO of First Solar Mark R Widmar, in Washington DC(ANI Photo)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi meeting CEO of First Solar Mark R Widmar, in Washington DC(ANI Photo)

PM Modi’s meeting with the five CEOs of different companies was directed at injecting fresh investment across several sectors to spur growth. The CEOs - Shantanu Narayen of Adobe, Mark Widmar of First Solar, Vivek Lall of General Atomics, Stephen Schwarzman of Blackstone Group and Qualcomm CEO Cristiano R Amon - lauded the initiatives taken by the government and said that India currently is one of the most promising destinations for foreign investment in various sectors.

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PM Modi kicked off his meeting with Qualcomm CEO Cristiano R Amon. Qualcomm, which is a world leader in 5G and next-generation wireless technology innovations and has been an industry leader for the last three decades, plans to launch ambitious projects in India.

PM Modi told Cristiano R Amon that India is prepared when it comes to 5G standards and urged him to ensure Qualcomm actively participates in this journey.

“I think the approach to driving economic growth in making India a destination for investment has been very successful and we welcome that,” Qualcomm CEO Amon said after meeting with the Prime Minister, news agency ANI reported.

‘Emphasis on Digital India, education’

PM Modi met Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen and both of them discussed future investment plans in India. Narayen said the discussions concentrated on giving Digital India a boost and ensuring technology helps citizens get better access to healthcare and education.

“For us, our biggest asset is people. Anything that happens with respect to encouraging education, having digital literacy helps Adobe,” Narayen said with respect to National Education Policy following his meeting with PM Modi, news agency ANI reported.

'Hard to emulate what India is doing'

First Solar CEO Mark A Widmar hailed India’s efforts on ensuring a sustainable future for itself and the planet. Widmar following his meeting with PM Modi said, “PM Modi’s commitment to ensuring domestic capabilities, ensuring long-term climate goals with focus on energy independence and security. The alignment of what he's trying to achieve couldn't be better for companies looking to manufacture in India,” Widmar was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Widmar also said that PM Modi’s leadership created a strong balance between industrial and trade policy. Widmar and the Prime Minister discussed India's renewable energy landscape, production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for manufacturing solar power equipment with unique thin-film technology and integrating India into global supply chains.

‘Empowering defence sector’

PM Modi’s meeting with General Atomics CEO Vivek Lall was aimed at bolstering India’s modern defence needs. PM Modi and Lall discussed India's advancements in drone technology, including the path-breaking reforms and PLI scheme.

Lall, following his meeting with the Prime Minister, said that the government introduced ‘laudable’ policy reforms which are needed from an investment perspective. “These are very laudable policies, prescriptions and reforms that PM Modi and the government has taken. I think that will certainly catalyze a lot of interest and investments in India,” Lall was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. He was speaking in reference to India’s new drone policy.

‘Friendly govt for outsiders’

Blackstone Group, which through the Blackstone Real Estate Fund is the largest owner of commercial real estate in India and also is the world’s largest commercial real estate company, lauded the policy reforms brought by PM Modi.

The CEO Stephen Schwarzman gifted PM Modi with a book written by him “What It Takes: Lessons in the Pursuit of Excellence” ahead of the meet. Following his meeting with PM Modi, where both discussed India’s investment potential. Schwarzmann said India is friendly towards ‘outsiders’ and said he grades India highly. “This is a very friendly government for outsiders. They're reform-oriented and objective. I would give them an extremely high grade as being good partners for people who like to bring capital into the country to create jobs,” Schwarzmann was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet Australian PM Scott Morrison, US Vice President Kamala Harris and attend the QUAD leadership summit next.

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