India has barred imports of laptops, tablets, and personal computers with immediate effect, according to a government notice.
According to reports, the prohibition is intended to encourage local manufacture.
Their import would be allowed against a valid licence for restricted imports,” the notice stated.
India has been attempting to promote domestic manufacturing by providing production-related incentives in over two dozen industries, including electronics.
It has extended the deadline for companies to apply for its $2 billion manufacturing incentive scheme to attract big-ticket investments in IT hardware manufacturing, which covers products like laptops, tablets, personal computers, and servers.
“The move’s spirit is to push manufacturing to India. It’s not a nudge, it’s a push,” former director general at electronics industry body MAIT, Ali Akhtar Jafri said.
Meanwhile, India has imposed high tariffs in the past on products like mobile phones to catalyze domestic output.
According to estimates from the industry association India Cellular and Electronics Association, the country produced $38 billion in mobile phones last year, but local manufacturing of laptops and tablets was only $4 billion.
Electronics imports, which include laptops, tablets, and personal computers, were $19.7 billion in April-June, up 6.25% year on year.
Electronics imports account for 7% to 10% of overall goods imports in the country.
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