Licensing will not be implemented for import of computers and laptops in the country. However, shipments of these devices will be monitored. Earlier in August, the central government had announced the implementation of the license requirement for import of certain products including computers, laptops and tablets from November 1. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal told reporters, “We believe that there are no such restrictions on laptops. We are only saying that the import of laptops should be monitored. We are only monitoring. There are no such restrictions. Are not.” In this regard, the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has said that there will be an import management system for this. It will be implemented from November 1. The regulation of IT hardware industry is with MeitY. DGFT notifies decisions related to import or export of any product. However, the IT hardware industry has expressed apprehensions regarding this. An industry source said, “It will be like an import management system in which an authorization will be issued to people. It is a type of licensing.” In this, companies will have to request for a specific number of imports and they will get authorization for import. Samsung, one of the big consumer electronics companies, has prepared to increase manufacturing in the country. The company’s smartphones are already being produced in the country. Samsung also plans to manufacture laptops at its factory in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh. This will give a boost to the Make in India scheme of the Central Government. Under this scheme, incentives are given for electronics manufacturing. Samsung has prepared to set up a new laptop manufacturing unit in the factory that produces smartphones. This unit will have the capacity to manufacture 60,000-70,000 laptops annually. The government had announced a $2 billion manufacturing incentive scheme with an aim to attract large investments in IT hardware manufacturing. The government aims to increase the annual production of electronics to $300 billion by 2026. Big companies selling laptops in the country include Apple, Dell, Lenovo and HP, Acer, Samsung and LG. A large number of laptops are imported from countries like China.
