Wednesday, November 16 2005 17:12 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Left Parties opposition notwithstanding, the Government today(Nov 16, 2005) said it was examining various models of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in retail sector.

"We are examining FDI in retail. We are keen to see that retail leads to modernization of our agriculture. The challenge is to find a model which does not displace or replace the existing investments and small shopkeepers," Commerce Minister Kamal Nath told reporters here.

Nath said the model that the Government was looking at must bring in technology and not replace existing investment.

The Minister, however, declined to give a time frame about by when would the Government be able to come out with a final view.

"We are currently studying various models," he said.

Earlier, inaugurating the Indo-US Summit organized by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, Nath said India's reform process has been very sustainable.

"The challenge was to have a calibrated approach taking into account the paradoxes of our country, which is why we have very India specific reform model," he said.

Nath said India's growth has been domestic investments driven focusing on domestic market unlike that of China.