The government has mostly not accepted the concessions demanded by Apple to set up a manufacturing unit in the country, said Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
“Apple India had sought concessions, including duty exemption on manufacturing and repair units, components, capital equipment (including parts) and consumables for smartphone manufacturing, and service repair for a period of 15 years,” the Minister said replying to a question on the concessions sought.
On whether the government was ready to accept most of the demands, Sitharaman answered in the negative. She, however, did not clarify whether the government will reject all demands or accept some of them.
Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion Secretary Ramesh Abhishek had earlier hinted that a possible easing of Foreign Direct Investment norms based on the submission made by Apple could be extended to the entire electronics manufacturing sector and not just the company. “If the government decides to listen to particular demands, it will be for the good of the entire sector, and the measures will be extended to all, and not just the company,” he had said last month.
Apple’s application for exemption from compulsory 30 per cent domestic sourcing norms was rejected by the Finance Ministry last year. It is not yet clear whether the company will have more luck on the matter once the government takes a final decision on its fresh application for concessions submitted after the tweaking of the FDI rules in the sector.