The government is looking to tweak in the Production Linked Incentive schemes for drones, pharma and technical textiles, and a Cabinet note is being prepared in this regard, a senior official said on Tuesday. The changes are based on the review of the 14 PLI schemes conducted last month by the Cabinet Secretary and industry demands.
For the drone sector the government may raise allocation under the scheme because the off-take is good, the official, who did not wish to be named said. For the pharma sector the time for availing incentives could be extended. As for the PLI for technical textiles, more clarity on the categories and products that qualify for incentives is being looked at. “In textiles, we are expanding the definition of certain other products in the technical textiles segment,” the official added.
Allocation for the PLI for drones and their components was Rs 120 crore when it was announced in September 2021. Though it seems modest, it was twice the turnover of the industry in 2020-21. In 2022-23, around Rs 30 crore has been reimbursed to the drone and parts makers.
Twelve drone and 11 component makers have qualified for the scheme that will run till FY 2025-end.
Pharma sector PLI was one of the earlier schemes in the series that was launched by the government. It had an outlay of Rs 15,000 and was expected to run for 6 years. Around 55 applications have been approved under the scheme and because there has been a delay in some of the plants coming onstream, the industry has asked for some changes in the timelines for the scheme.
The application window for PLI for man-made fibre (MMF) apparel, MMF fabrics and technical textiles is open till October-end. It is the second attempt by the government to get PLI in the sector off the ground.
The PLI scheme for textiles with an outlay of Rs 10683 crore was first announced in September 2021. Around 67 companies applied under the scheme of which 64 were approved. However, no investments were made by successful applicants. The government decided to re-invite the applications in July this year.
The PLI is the flagship scheme of the government to boost local manufacturing in the critical sectors of the economy. It has an outlay of Rs 1.97 trillion but only Rs 2900 crore has been disbursed till March 2023. As more units that were approved under the scheme start manufacturing this figure is expected to touch Rs 13000 crore by the end of this financial year.
“The payment of incentives for white goods (air conditioners and LED lights) would start from this month onwards as production in some of the units have started,” the official said.
The scheme covers 14 industries. While some of the sectors like electronics, mobile phones, pharma are doing well, PLI in High Efficiency Solar PV Modules, Advance chemistry Cell (AC) Battery and Speciality Steel are slow in taking- off.
Other issues around PLI that were flagged during the last month’s review were timely processing of claims, visa-related matters where vendors require Chinese professionals’ expertise, and delay in getting environmental clearances.
These issues are being looked at separately, the official added.