New Delhi: The Union Cabinet has approved a Rs 17,000 crore incentive to boost local manufacturing of IT hardware like tablets and laptops. Further, the scheme is projected to generate an incremental production worth Rs 3.35 lakh crore over a period of six years. IT and Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that companies having high volume sales are interested, and iPad maker Apple is also seriously evaluating the scheme.
The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme 2.0 for IT hardware covers laptops, tablets, all-in-one PCs, servers, and ultra-small form factor devices. The scheme was earlier introduced in 2021 but did not get the expected traction. “For IT PLI, the budgetary outlay is Rs 17,000 crore. The tenure of the programme is six years… we will accept the first set of applications by October,” Vaishnaw said after the Cabinet meeting.
The scheme is expected to lead to incremental production of Rs 3.35 lakh crore, incremental investment of Rs 2,430 crore and create incremental direct employment for 75,000 people during the six-year period, he said.
Further, Vaishnaw said that investments under various PLI schemes, especially those for telecom and mobile phones, have been higher compared to the government estimates.
Under the new scheme, companies will get an incentive of up to five percent and an optional incentive of four percent if they use domestically-produced components compared to just two percent incentive offered under the old scheme.
To a question about which companies are interested in the scheme, Vaishnaw said, “Those who have high volumes. You know their names. HP, Dell, Acer, Asus have high volumes. Apple is niche. They are also very seriously evaluating it.”
When asked about the eligibility of investment from Chinese companies under the scheme, Vaishnaw said that there are well-defined trusted source norms in the country and any company that complies with the rules can invest under PLI Scheme 2.0 for IT hardware.
Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that after the successes in building a rapidly growing and world’s second-largest base and a trusted base for smartphone manufacturing, the focus is now on broadening and deepening India’s electronics ecosystem. “Today’s Cabinet approval of IT hardware PLI 2.0 is focussed on expanding India’s production and presence in global value chains of IT hardware, servers, laptops,” he said.
He also said the scheme will play a key role in catalysing India’s Techade and in achieving USD 1 trillion digital economy goal, including USD 300 billion in electronics manufacturing by 2025-26. Electronics manufacturing in the country has witnessed a 17 per cent Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) in the last eight years to cross USD 105 billion worth of production this year.
