Samsung, HFCL, 19 other firms miss out on telecom PLI sops

An ambitious scheme to boost local telecom manufacturing is still far from its target, four years after the government set aside ₹12,000 crore to get companies to build everything from network gear to set-top boxes.

- Jatin Grover

While beneficiaries of the scheme have sold goods worth over ₹80,000 crore during the period, incentive claims are still a fraction of the original allocation.

Top manufacturers such Samsung, HFCL Ltd, Netweb Technologies, Kaynes International, Optiemus unit GDN Enterprises, and state-owned ITI Ltd have not claimed any incentives yet, as they either failed to start manufacturing or were unable to meet targets.

The result: Only a tenth of the incentives have been claimed by manufacturers so far.

A Right To Information (RTI) request found that the scheme disbursed ₹1,162.04 crore by the end of FY25, against the ₹12,195 crore approved for five years. While 42 companies were shortlisted, only half claimed incentives. The scheme was introduced in February 2021 to incentivize the local manufacture of equipment such as network switches, transmission gear and set-top boxes.

According to industry executives, the reasons include weak order book and demand, competition within the segment and the inability to meet set targets of investments and sales.