January 3, 2022
The Department of Telecommunications has accepted 31 proposals from national and international entities
Investments worth US$ 33 million and production worth US$ 828 million have been made by participants till date
Ericsson and Nokia are well placed to deliver the targets prescribed to the first year of the PLI
Incentives ranging from 4-7% for interested participants, 1% incentives have been assigned for MSMEs
The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) targeting the growth of the telecommunications sector and transforming it into a hub of equipment manufacturing was announced on February 24, 2021. The scheme was rolled out with a financial outlay of US$ 1.629 billion (Rs 12,195 crore) and will be operational until 2025-26. As of date, 31 proposals have been approved by the Department of Telecommunications from entities including Flextronics, Tejas Networks, Ericsson’s Jabil Unit, GS India, VVDN Technologies, Nokia India and Dixon Technologies. Since the launch of the PLI, investments to the tune of US$ 33 million (Rs 247 crore) and production worth US$ 828 million (Rs 6,200 crore) have been made by telecom equipment manufacturers. Of this, large Indian companies are seen to have invested US$ 11.49 million (Rs 86 crore) and contributed to US$ 85.6 million (641 crore) in production. Global entities have contributed to US$ 731 million (Rs 5,471 crore) worth of equipment manufacturing and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) have invested US$ 16.304 million (Rs 122 crore) as per media sources.
While a bulk of the entities that have availed the scheme have requested for an extension in order to meet the targets notified for the first year, Ericsson and Nokia are reported to have made progress towards the same. Incentives ranging from 4-7% are currently available for the entities covered under the scheme.