New PLI scheme to attract global cos to India from China: Ashwini Vaishnaw

In a Q&A, the minister of communications says the new scheme for IT hardware also invites Chinese players to set up shop under the scheme if they adhere to its norms

The new production-linked incentive scheme for IT hardware is likely to see top global companies shifting base from China and setting up units to assemble laptops, PCs and tablets in India, says Union Minister of Communications Ashwani Vaishnaw in an interview with Surajeet Das Gupta, just after unravelling the details of the scheme. Edited excerpts:

Q. Do you think the new PLI scheme on IT hardware will attract global players to set up assembly units in India?

 

I was in the US, where I met top executives of HP and Dell, and they are very keen to come to India. Acer and ASUS have also evinced interest. Indian manufacturing has matured a lot, and our contract manufacturers are building the ecosystem. I see a new homegrown Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) player being added every month.

So you have Dixon, Sanmina, VVDN and many others. Our aim is to replicate the mobile device model and encourage global companies to shift their capacities to India from China. The new PLI is significantly different from the earlier scheme.