Aniket Pujari
Reacting to the muted response thus far, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) reopened the application window for the PLI scheme, which covers air conditioners (ACs) and LED lights, on July 15. This window is expected to close on October 12.
Speaking at the CII Consumer Electronics and Durables Summit 2024 in New Delhi, DPIIT’s Additional Secretary, Rajeev Kumar Thakur, highlighted the lack of response to the scheme for several reasons. He emphasised that the time is ripe for increasing investments in India, especially as the government has enhanced its capital expenditure. So far, 66 applicants with a committed investment of ₹6,962 crore have been selected as PLI beneficiaries in this sector.
The Union Cabinet approved the PLI scheme for white goods, aimed at manufacturing components and sub-assemblies of air conditioners and LED lights, on April 7, 2021. The scheme will be implemented over seven years, from FY 2021-22 to FY 2028-29, with an outlay of ₹6,238 crore. It offers an incentive of 4-6% on incremental turnover over the base year for goods sold in India and exported to global markets, applicable to eligible companies for five years.
For the manufacturing of AC components, companies such as Daikin, Voltas, Hindalco, Amber, PG Technoplast, Epack, Mettube, LG, Bluestar, Johnson Hitachi, Panasonic, Haier, Midea, Havells, IFB, Nidec, Lucas, Swaminathan, and Triton Valves have invested thus far.
In the LED lights sector, companies that have invested include Dixon, RK Lighting, Radhika Opto, Surya, Orient, Signify, Crompton Greaves, Stove Kraft, Cosmo Films, Halonix, Chenfeng, Fulham, Adsun Inventronix, and Luker.
