Kapil Sibal cancels Seoul trip amidst growing tension between North and South Korea

Escalating tensions in the Korean Peninsula seem to be affecting India's plans to attract investments.

Union Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal was scheduled to visit the South Korean capital of Seoul this Sunday

but cancelled his visit at the last minute. Sources say the government took this decision following reports that hostilities between North and South Korea could result in military action.

"I have not cancelled my trip. We have postponed it by a few weeks. We hope to invite investors and technology from across the word and that will give a huge boost to job creation," Mr Sibal told NDTV.

The minister, though, did not give any indication as to what kind of numbers the government is looking at in terms of employment generation.

Mr Sibal was scheduled to hold a roadshow in Seoul where the government planned to invite South Korean companies producing electronic goods. Though South Korean consumer durables companies like Samsung and LG have a large presence in India, the Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DEITY) is looking for investors in segments like smart electronic gadgets, computers, tablets among others.

Sources familiar with the project say the government has already received investment proposals to the tune of Rs. 4,000 crore from companies across the world. While firms from Japan and USA have evinced a keen interest, sources in the telecom ministry say India is also looking at countries such as Israel, Brazil and South Africa for investments. The Indian electronics market is estimated to grow to over Rs. 21,000 crore by 2020.

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