Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Friday announced a bonanza for the industry, allowing Indian corporates to make overseas investments up to 100 per cent of their net worth and lifting the ceiling of $100 million.

He also said that the industry would be allowed to go global in the area of agricultural sector.

The restriction on investing $100 million has been lifted with immediate effect.

• The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2004

The prime minister announced that the Indian agriculture sector units will be permitted to open offices abroad and compete in the global market.

"This will enable Indian companies to take advantage of global opportunities and acquire technological and other skills for adoption in India," Vajpayee said.

He said that the strides taken by India in many industrial sectors had surprised the world. He hoped the country's 'further, longer and golden strides' will continue to spring more pleasant surprises in the days to come.

"The Indian economy has been growing rapidly and by 2020 we would have made all round development in all the sectors," he said.

He commended the performance of the Indian corporates that have taken over private companies abroad.

He said India had emerged as a strong economy and had transformed itself from an aid-receiving country to an aid-giving country.

Lauding the economy for nearing the 8 per cent growth target in 2004, Vajpayee announced a number of measures for expansion of Indian industry the world over.

Inaugurating the second Pravasi Bharatiya Divas celebrations in New Delhi, Vajpayee said that India was on the way to becoming a superpower in information technology as the country's IT prowess had been recognised the world over.

"India has made its mark in the IT sector. There are times when the loss of jobs in other countries is blamed on Indians. Such blame is misplaced," he said.

"We have decided to permit Indian corporates to go global in the agricultural sector. The current restrictions on Indian corporates to undertake agricultural activities abroad, whether directly or through an overseas branch, will be removed," Vajpayee said.

He expressed the confidence that the move would enable Indian companies to take advantage of global opportunities.

This would also help adoption of technological and other skills in India, he said.

Lauding the role of Persons of Indian Origin/NRIs and their contribution to the economies of their adopted countries, the prime minister pointed out that over Rs 55,000 crore (Rs 550 billion) had come from NRIs and Keralites accounted for nearly half of that.

Emphasising that India had come a long way since he inaugurated the first Pravasi Bharatiya Divas last year, jointly organised by the government and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Vajpayee said only last month foreign exchange reserves had crossed $100 billion mark and the country was pre-paying its external loans.

He said that his government has decided to grant dual citizenship to the Pravasi Bharatiyas living in some countries where the legal systems are compatible with the dual citizenship system.

A compulsory insurance scheme introduced for India workers migrating to Gulf and South East Asian countries.

The scheme is called Pravasi Bharatiya Bima Yojna. It has been introduced from December 25, 2003.

A Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra has been set in Delhi with a seed grant of Rs 25 crore (Rs 250 million).

The government will provide a suitable plot of land and an autonomous body will run it.

The centre will deal with 'multifarious needs' of the Diaspora.

Each year a group of 50 second- and third-generation Indian-origin youth from different countries will be invited to visit India for two weeks and taken to various places. They will also participate in the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.

He said that the days of 'brain drain' were over and many of the successful Indians were returning to their homeland because they feel that India is the land of opportunity for global investors and a very fast growing world market.

He announced that the children of the Non-Resident Indians studying in Indian schools would now pay the same fee as the Indian citizens do.

Vajpayee said that the government of India expected that in the year 2004, the country will achieve 8 per cent GDP growth rate.