Laptop, tablet, PC prices to rise sky high in India

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The central government has imposed import restrictions on computers, laptops and tablets in the country. A notification on this was issued on Thursday and the ban is effective immediately.

According to the notification issued by the government, the import of computers, laptops and tablets will now be in the restricted category, and a valid import license will be required if import is necessary. However, there will be no restriction on these products imported under baggage rules.

Imports of $19.7 billion in April-June:

During the April-June quarter of this year, there was a 6.25 percent growth rate in the annual imports of electronic products.

In the first quarter of the current financial year, the country imported electronics worth $19.7 billion. This includes laptops, tablets and personal computers. The share of electronic products in the country’s total merchandise imports is between 7 percent and 10 percent.

Putting the import of any product in the restricted category means that a license or government permission will be mandatory for import. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification issued on Thursday that for research and development, testing, benchmarking and evaluation, repair and return and product development purposes, per consignment will now be exempted from import license for up to 20 items. However, these products cannot be sold in the market after importing them to meet their needs. This means that these products will either have to be destroyed or can be exported again. The question here is how companies will be able to export these products again after using them for a long time. The purpose of this step by the government is to reduce imports from countries like China. The notification said that the import of laptops, tablets, all-in-one personal computers and servers has been put in the ‘Restricted’ category with immediate effect.

Prices will increase immediately:

According to Swarn Singh, general secretary of All Delhi Computer Traders Association, this step of the government will create a negative atmosphere across the country. He said that the prices of laptops, computers and tablets will start increasing immediately. He said that on one hand the government is talking about digital India and on the other hand it is taking such steps. This is not a good step for both business environment and the country.

Local manufacturing will get a boost:

Former Director General of Electronics Industry Body MAIT Ali Akhtar Jafri said that this will boost local manufacturing in India.

Government wants big investment in IT hardware:

The central government is giving production-linked incentives to two dozen sectors including electronics to boost local manufacturing. Due to no big investment in IT hardware manufacturing, the government has now imposed a ban on IT hardware imports. In addition, to attract big investment, the government has also extended the last date for applying for $2 billion PLI scheme. Laptops, tablets, personal computers and servers are included in IT hardware manufacturing PLI scheme.

India wants to become a powerhouse:

The government’s plan is to become a powerhouse in the global electronics supply chain. The government has set a target of $300 billion annual production by 2026. Dell, Acer, Samsung, LG Electronics, Apple Inc., Lenovo and HP Inc. are some of the major companies that sell laptops and tablets in the Indian market. These companies import most of their parts from countries like China. Laptops, tablets and personal computers account for about 1.5 percent of the country’s total annual imports. Out of 1.5 percent, about half is imported from China.