Search results

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the relationship between foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows and economic growth with a special focus on the institutional environment at the state level. FDI-led economic growth and economic growth-led FDI have two dominant theoretical foundations, but empirical research supports contradictory findings. These perspectives largely ignore the institutional environment, assuming institutions to be background information.

To examine the causal relationship between FDI, the Granger causality method has been used. The impact of FDI inflows and other institutional factors on economic growth has been examined using the panel data regression method. The principal component analysis (PCA) method has also been used to develop indexes for some variables.

Results indicate a two-way Granger causality between FDI inflows and economic growth at the state level. Infrastructures, education expenses, labour availability and gross fixed-capital formation (GFCF) are positive and significant determinants, whilst corruption and FDI inflows are leaving negative impact on state-wise economic growth.

This study contributes to the body of the literature in four different ways: first, it empirically examines the trends and patterns of subnational FDI inflow and economic growth disparity in India; second, it examines the causality between FDI and economic growth. Third, with the institution-based paradigm in international business, it investigates how institutional variables affect the expansion of the economy. Fourth, it extends prior research by examining the link at the state level using a large panel data set made up of 29 states and 7 union territories (UTs) over the years 2000–2019.

This chapter is focused on India's destination marketing strategies that promote religious tourism. It sheds light on the Government of India's initiatives to attract faithful tourists to sacred locations including holy temples and places of interest for spiritual pilgrims. The tourism business in India has gone through numerous phases of growth. This research reveals how the state government and central governments have stepped up their commitment to develop tourism, including religious tourism, on multiple fronts. It confirms that India can be rightly considered as the land of faith, as spirituality and religion are very prominent, as evidenced by its holy temples and landmarks, located in different regions of the subcontinent. In conclusion, it discusses about the challenges for the future, and elaborates on the opportunities related to promoting religious tourism to target faithful pilgrims and other visitors to “Incredible India.”