Give us level playing field, says Sarkozy

On the challenges posed by the climate change he said, “We won’t ask you to choose between growth and environment but to adopt a new model of growth.”

Congratulating the businesspeople for the impressive growth figures of the Indian economy he said, “In France, we admire the Indian model where a huge population is being turned, instead of a problem, into an asset. We admire you in the way you create highly skilled technocrats and computer engineers in huge numbers every year.”

Appreciating the freedom of doing business in India and contrasting it with other economies Sarkozy said, “Business proposals in India are negotiated at the firm level, where it should be, and not at the state level.” He went on to say that the G-8 should be converted to G-13 by the forthcoming Tokyo Summit to accommodate India, China, Mexico, Brazil, and South Africa.