The union government has reportedly approved 110 applications so far seeking authorisation to import laptops, computers and other IT hardware products.
As per news agency PTI, the Centre has so far received 111 such requests, including from hardware giants such as Dell, Apple, HP, Lenovo, IBM, Asus, Samsung, Xiaomi, Cisco Commerce India, Siemens, and Bosch.
“Around 110 import authorisations have been issued till date. All major IT hardware companies have already availed authorisations. All applications received are being disposed of within the time stipulated. There is no pendency as on date,” a government official told the news agency.
This comes a month after the union government rescinded plans to impose a licensing regime on import of IT hardware products, including laptops and computers. Rather than opting for licensing mandates, the Centre then said that authorities would regulate the inbound shipments of such products through an ‘import management system’, which came into effect on November 1.
The new import management system will enable the companies to bring shipments into the country through mere authorisation by detailing quantity and value. The new platform has reportedly been envisaged to monitor shipments of IT hardware products without opting for a licensing regime or disrupting the market supply chain.
The crux of the matter pertains to a diktat issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) in August this year that imposed strict restrictions on the import of certain categories of laptops, tablets, and personal computers.
The move was largely guided by the Centre’s plans to ensure these key hardware products come from trusted sources and do not contain any malware or spyware. Alongside, the restrictions were also imposed to boost local manufacturing.
The union government even launched a $2 Bn production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme to attract global players and rolled out a red carpet for them. Earlier, it was reported that 38 companies had applied for manufacturing IT hardware locally under the PLI scheme.
However, the move triggered a panic among global players operating in India as they scrambled for licences and mulled moving some production to India. The restriction also invited terse criticism from the industry. Eventually, after much back and forth, the proposal was shelved and the Centre decided to revoke all restrictions on the imports of laptops last month.
Since then, the government has been mulling a key proposal which would mandate IT hardware importers to ensure they have international certification in order to sell their products and establish a trusted supply chain in India.
India still largely depends on foreign imports for computers and laptops, and has been witnessing a steady inflow of such products into the country. As per a report by Canalys, vendors shipped more than 3.9 Mn desktops, notebooks and tablets to India between April and June 2023, down 15% year-on-year.
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