Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government is pushing to
boost domestic manufacturing capacity under its "Make in India"
initiative, with several global companies either setting up their own units or
entering joint ventures with Indian firms.
The applications by the electronics companies were made
under the country's $2 billion production-linked incentive (PLI) programme for
information technology hardware, announced in May, Information Technology
Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.
Earlier this month, India said it would impose a licensing
requirement for imports of laptops, tablets and personal computers, which was
widely seen as a move to boost local production.
The companies that have applied to make laptops and other
products in India include Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Dell Technologies, Asus,
Acer and Lenovo, said Vaishnaw, according to a video feed from ANI news agency,
in which Reuters has a minority stake.
The PLI scheme for IT hardware is expected to bring Rs. 24.3
billion of incremental investment and is likely to generate 75,000 direct jobs,
the minister said.
India will provide a transition period of about three months
before a new licensing regime for imports of laptops, tablets, and personal
computers comes into effect, the country's trade regulator said on August 5.
This is a partial reversal from a surprise decision on
Thursday to impose the licensing requirement with immediate effect, which had
prompted calls for a delay.
"Import consignments can be cleared till October 31
without a license and a government permit would be required for clearance of
import from November 1," the government said in a notification. © Reuters