Kochi: India is now the most favourable investment destination globally and there is need to give a push to reforms with a ‘human face’, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu said today.

He said there were great opportunities to invest and progress and the states were engaging in healthy competition with each other to prosper.

India has been able to move forward and was now the most favourable investment destination globally, he said at the 160th anniversary celebrations of Cochin Chamber of Commerce and Industry here.

“We need to push the reforms, reforms with a human face,” he said, adding that investment has to be improved.

He urged the industry to invest more, taking advantage of the ‘favourable situation’ prevailing in the country.

He said industry bodies like the ASSOCHAM, FICCI and Chamber of Commerce have a greater responsibility to ensure their members follow ethics and ethical corporate governance, tax compliance and corporate social responsibility.

“You must also have a self code of conduct,” he said

On demonetisation, he said its purpose was to bring the unaccounted money into banks. Money lying in various places “has come to banks with an address”, he said.

The vice president said 56 lakh people have joined the ranks of the Income Tax payees post the exercise by the government last year. There would be further addition and once the tax net was widened, the tax rate would come down, he said.

On the Goods and Services Tax, he said it was a culmination of the combined efforts of all parliamentarians cutting across party lines.

He said the government was trying to address shortcomings (in GST) and said it could be further improved after taking suggestions from all political parties.