The Bhopal gas tragedy and developments following it should not become an impediment in seeking American investment in India though the issue of
liability in case of an industrial accident should be resolved, noted industrialist Rajan Bharti Mittal said on Tuesday.
"On that premise not to seek US investment, I think... would be unfair," Mittal, Managing Director of Bharti Enterprises told reporters at the National Press Club here.
Responding to a question on the impact of the latest developments in the Bhopal tragedy case on US investment in India, he said the country should not stop seeking investment because of what happened in 1984.
"You can't lock ourselves in past. Tragedies happen around the world, it is not only about Bhopal. It is a situation which is untenable, yet that happened many moons back.
"It's like saying never travel on train after a train accident, then the process probably would be going into medieval life," he said.
Mittal is currently on an 18-day trip to the United States in his capacity as president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) to hold a series of meetings with leaders of the US corporate sector and
officials to boost up business ties between the two sides.
Noting that the US is a large Indian trading partnerand a country with high innovation and technology, Mittal said India needs US investment.
But, he added, that the liability issue needs to be resolved.
"We have been in courts for I do not know how many years. Yet we have not seen that company has been able or responsible enough to come around.
"I do not know what kind of back up insurance they had. My feeling those many years back, there would be hardly much," he said.