Fadnavis Slams Opposition, Backs Davos MoUs as FDI-Driven
The opposition parties, including Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) have criticised the Davos MoUs as the state government’s “marketing “ strategy. They have questioned the need to sing MoUs with Mumbai based companies in Davos.
Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has defended the MoUs signed at the World Economic Forum in Davos saying every agreement inked there saying they involve significant foreign direct investment (FDI). “There is an 83 percent FDI in the Rs 30 lakh crores of MoUs signed in Davos,” the CM said on Thursday.
The opposition parties, including Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) have criticised the Davos MoUs as the state government’s “marketing “ strategy. They have questioned the need to sing MoUs with Mumbai based companies in Davos.
However, the Chief Minister defended the decision to sign MoUs on an international stage, considering the strategic importance of the World Economic Forum. “Davos is a platform that broadcasts every deal to the entire world, cementing Maharashtra’s position as a premier investment destination. There is global visibility. Global companies schedule their board meetings around the Davos summit, making it the most efficient venue for finalising large-scale international contracts,” he said.
Fadnavis clarified that the investment in Maharashtra is not limited to the industrial sector, but in all major sectors like service sector, agricultural technology, green energy, manufacturing and financial services. He said in the FDI projects, foreign companies or their Indian subsidiaries have entered into direct agreements. Apart from this, 16 percent of the investment is linked to financial institutions, which includes partnerships with foreign entities and state-of-the-art foreign technology. The Chief Minister said that this will reduce the dependence on imports and the same technology will now be available in Maharashtra.
According to the CM, the major countries investing in Maharashtra include developed countries like UK, America, Japan, Switzerland, Sweden, Singapore, UAE, France, Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Spain and Finland. This reflects the economic stability and ethical credibility of Maharashtra at the global level, he added.
Terming the social media criticism surrounding the state’s investment pacts at Davos as ‘pre-planned toolkit,’ the Chief Minister asserted that those who cannot stomach Maharashtra’s success are spreading coordinated messages to mislead the public.
Taking a direct swipe at critics, Fadnavis said, “I have taken note of the paid toolkit campaigns on social media. We ignore people with small minds and small hearts, but we will eventually expose them.”
The CM further contrasted the current administration’s success with previous years, pointing out that in 2020-21, MoUs worth only Rs 70,000-80,000 crore were signed, whereas the current mission is driving Mumbai towards becoming the global ‘Number One’ hub for data centres.
