Govt releases Rs 2,874 cr to PLI beneficiaries so far: Official

New Delhi: The government has released Rs 2,874.71 crore to the beneficiaries of the production-linked incentive scheme till March, with a majority of companies from eight sectors like electronics, telecom, pharma and food processing, a senior official said on Wednesday.

Additional Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Rajeev Singh Thakur said these eight sectors are doing well, while few need to increase their pace.

The scheme was announced in 2020 for 14 sectors with an outlay of Rs 1.97 lakh crore to enhance domestic manufacturing capabilities and boost exports.

He said that incentive claims of over Rs 3,420.05 crore have been received under the scheme for eight sectors - large-scale electronics manufacturing; electronics and technology products; bulk drugs; medical devices; pharmaceuticals; telecom and networking products; food items; and drones, of which "over Rs 2,800 crore have already been disbursed".

"The next two-three years will be crucial and we hope that things will move with a fast pace," Singh told reporters here.

Till December 2022, 717 applications have been approved in 14 sectors with expected investments of Rs 2.74 lakh crore.

Actual investment of Rs 53,500 crore has been realised, which has resulted in incremental production/sales of over Rs 5 lakh crore and employment generation of over 3 lakhs, he added.

A maximum of Rs 1,649 was disbursed in the electronics sector. It was followed by pharma (Rs 652 crore), food products (Rs 486 crore), telecom (Rs 35 crore), drones (Rs 30 crore), medical devices (12.8 crore), and electronics (Rs 5.3 crore) and bulk drugs (Rs 4.34 crore).

The other sectors where the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme has been extended include white goods, speciality steel, advanced chemistry cells, auto components and textiles.

When asked about plans to include more sectors under the scheme, he said that demands are coming from different industries but no decision has been taken yet.

"We expect that in the next 2-3 years, things will move at a healthy rate," he added.