India's gross FDI is record-high, but net retention has plummeted to 8 cents on the dollar, a five-year decline. While officials offer varied interpretations, the author argues this is structural. Reasons include changing FDI composition, sectoral inversion towards software, a surge in Indian outbound investment, and weak domestic corporate capital expenditure. Government reforms address entry, not retention, which requires a "returns answer." The author suggests tracking FDI residence time and building industrial ecosystems. India is now a "river" for capital, with high volume but low accumulation, necessitating a focus on retention policy.