PLI investments, production to overshoot estimates: Union Minister Piyush Goyal

Actual investments under the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes were Rs 1.46 lakh crore till August and expected to increase to Rs 2 lakh crore in the coming years, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal said Sunday.

This has resulted in production/sales worth Rs. 12.5 lakh crore and employment generation of around 9.5 lakh (direct & indirect) which is expected to reach 12 lakh soon.

“Make in India and PLI both have an umbilical cord, which is impossible to separate…this was our response to the growing dependence on imports in several sectors,” Goyal said, after meeting with representatives of 140 companies that are beneficiaries of the 14 PLI schemes across sectors.

India has PLI schemes for 14 sectors where 1,300 units are operational.

Goyal said that another Rs 2 lakh crore of inventing are expected under the semiconductor mission.

Till August 2024, actual investment of Rs 1.46 lakh crore has been realized and resulted in production/m worth Rs 12.5 lakh crore and employment generation of around 9.5 lakh (direct and indirect).Stating that the PLI schemes for steel, drones, medical devices, white goods and food processing have seen success stories, the minister said: “This is helping import substitution, domestic value addition and foreign exchange earnings through exports.”“Exports have exceeded Rs 4 lakh crore, with substantial contribution from key sectors such as electronics, pharmaceuticals & food processing,” the commerce and industry ministry said in a statement.

Goyal said that no decision on the extension of PLI schemes had been taken, and it will be at an “appropriate time” and on a case-by-case basis.

Public procurement

Goyal said that the issue of PLI beneficiaries getting greater market access in government procurement will also be reviewed in certain sectors so that the Class-I and Class-II criteria to define suppliers can be liberalised.

“In government procurement, a few amendments will be required sectorally, where domestic value addition is less but gradually increased. I have asked my officials if we could have a roadmap so that they can transition to become Class I and Class II suppliers,” he said.

A class-I local supplier is any company or firm whose goods, services or works offered for procurement meet the minimum local content requirement of at least 50%. In comparison, class-II suppliers have at least 20% local content addition in their products and services.

The minister that the government will also look at providing support for entities that are producing goods for the first time in India.

“We have asked sectors to get back to us in details, so that we can take some technical expertise and advise, see if it can be made eligible for supply through lab tests without prior experience,” he said.