CALCUTTA: London based industrialist Swraj Paul says that huge amounts running into “thousands ‘of corers” of unaccounted money are being laundered by a lot of Indians who are creating their own brand of nonresident Indians (NRD).

In an interview he said “It has become denigrating to call oneself an NRI.”

According to Paul, a number of Indians businessmen and others were rerouting their own “unaccounted money” through some of their distant relatives and friends abroad and getting it back under NRI accounts.

He said some of such money which had “disappeared” from the country would come back as NRI investments.

Asked about the estimates of the amounts being “laundered” Paul replied, “the estimates of money floating around on this account run into thousands of corers of rupees.”

Businessmen are not the “only ones who have accumulated money in this manner,” he said.

Paul, who shook the Indian corporate world in 1983 by making an unsuccessful and controversial takeover bid for DCM and Escorts companies, said corporate takeovers in India now are “cozy affairs.”

Most such takeovers, he said were being done with the connivance of the people in control of the company condemned. At times even the government was a party to such bids, he added.

In his view, ordinary shareholders were not benefiting in any way from the takeovers being witnessed now. “A time must come when the common shareholder should gain from a change of guard of companies,” he emphasized. Referring to the boom in the stock market in the eighties which was showing signs of continuing into the current decade, Paul claimed that inculcating the “share culture” in the Indian public was his “greatest contribution to the country.”

In this context, he said the shareholders “population” swelled from million in 1983 to about 70 million now, adding that this had led to better performance by shareholder “population.”

Since pulling out investments from India, Paul said, his business in U.K., the U.S., Canada, Spain and Australia had made tremendous progress.

In the last four years, the turnover of his group of industries, has doubled to 400 million pounds, he added.

Describing Indian, government’s new industrial policy as “good” Paul said there was no ground for apprehension that it would open floodgates of foreign capital.

Not many NRIS or foreign investors would “come rushing to India” unless they were sure about the safety of their money and the returns,

Answering a question on the million strong Indian community in England, Paul said Indians there had given a “good account” of themselves in various fields and they were also regarded as “one of the most law abiding people.”

The new high commissioner, Kuldip Nayyar, was very popular with the community and was doing an excellent job, he added.

Paul said emergence of the single European market in 1992 would provide India with greater export possibilities. It would in tum help reduce costs and improve quality of products because of still competition.

NEW DELHI: The second foreign secretary level meeting of the India China joint working group opened here Thursday to find a reasonable and mutually acceptable settlement of the vexed boundary question.

The Chinese delegation was led by vice foreign minister QI Huaiyuan, and the Indian side by foreign secretary much kind Dubey.

Article extracted from this publication >> September 7, 1990