NEW DELHI: The production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for telecom equipment manufacturers got an overwhelming response as the companies such as Samsung, Nokia and Jabil invested Rs 1,181.25 crore in the country. Government data suggests these investments generated products with sales value of Rs 13,541 crore till January 31, 2023. The scheme, which was notified in 2021, also gave employment to 11,000 people in the telecom sector.
According to the figures released by the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) on Tuesday, till January 30, 2023, equipment worth Rs 5,746 crore as well as products worth Rs 7,794 crore were utilised in the country. “With the launch of 5G in India in October 2022 by the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi), the telecom sector is witnessing a capital expenditure cycle with investment of more than Rs 1.5 lakh crore expected in 2023. Therefore, the actual result or success of the scheme will be shown this year,” said an official from DoT.
Commerce ministry data suggests the country exported telecom instruments worth Rs 80,490 crore from April 2022 to January 2023. It is up 90% yearly. However, the country imported electronic instruments worth Rs 109,007 crore for the same period. The official also added that among the companies, Swedish equipment manufacturer Nokia exported the highest amount of equipment to Europe.
The government, to promote domestic manufacturing of telecom and networking products in India, launched the scheme in 2021. The scheme was amended in April 2022 to facilitate design-led manufacturing with an additional incentive of 1% over the existing incentive rates. So far, the government has granted approval to 42 companies, including 28 MSMEs, under the scheme for telecom and networking products.
Out of this, 17 companies have applied for additional incentive of 1% under design-led-manufacturing criteria. These 42 firms have committed investment of Rs 4,115 crore, which will generate additional sales of Rs 2.45 lakh crore and create additional employment of more than 44,000 over the scheme period. Recently, the GX Group became the first shortlisted entity under the scheme to have received the incentive. The other selected companies are Samsung, Nokia, Jabil, Rising Star (Foxconn) and Flextronics as well as local players like HFCL, ITI, VVDN and Tejas Networks.
Nokia exports highest amount of equipment
Commerce ministry data suggests India exported telecom instruments worth Rs 80,490 crore from April 2022 to January 2023. It is up 90% yearly. Country imported electronic instruments worth Rs 109,007 crore for the same period. Nokia exported the highest amount of equipment to Europe