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Resolve Dabhol dispute reasonably: Rocca

The US Assistant Secretary of State Christina B Rocca at a meeting organised by the Confederation of Indian Indusrtries in New Delhi on Tuesday said that the ongoing dispute between Dabhol Power Company and Maharashtra State Electricity Board has cast a dark cloud over India's entire investment climate and warned that it would be difficult for international investors to view the country favourably until the dispute was resolved in a "reasonable manner".

US companies are definitely interested in India, but the investment climate is far from optimal, Rocca said adding that "from an American perspective, as I am sure you have all heard before, many of India's problems in this regard can be summed up in the five-letter word Enron."

"We believe that engagement by the Indian central government is especially important, as is discussion of Dabhol's place in India's broader plans for reform of the power sector," Rocca added.

On the general trade relations with India, Rocca said that despite the fact that US is India's largest trading partner, bilateral trade remained far below what it should be, she said.

The picture on intellectual property rights also looked mixed, she said adding that it was unfortunate that India did not provide product patent protection for medicines which was a significant source of pirated items.

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